An update of USGS bear-real-time earthquake shaking and impact products
David J. Wald, Kishor S. Jaiswal, Kristin Marano, Mike Hearne, Kuo-wan Lin, Daniel Slosky, Kate E. Allstadt, Eric M. Thompson, Charles Worden, Gavin P. Hayes, Vince Quitoriano
2020, Conference Paper
We report on advancements in both hazard and consequence modeling that form the core of the U.S. Geological Survey’s (USGS) strategy to improve rapid earthquake shaking and loss estimates. Whereas our primary goal is to improve our operational capabilities of the USGS National Earthquake Information Center, the science, software,...
Geologic map of the Dog River and northern part of the Badger Lake 7.5′ quadrangles, Hood River County, Oregon
Jason D. McClaughry, William E. Scott, Carlie J. M. Duda, Richard M. Conrey
2020, Geological Map 126
The Dog River and northern part of the Badger Lake 7.5' quadrangles encompasses an area of ~201 km2 (77.6 mi2) of the High Cascades of north-central Oregon, lying across the eastern slopes of Mount Hood volcano (Figure 1-1; Plate 1; referred to herein as Dog River–Badger Lake area). Mount Hood,...
2017 Volcanic activity in Alaska—Summary of events and response of the Alaska Volcano Observatory
James P. Dixon, Cheryl E. Cameron, Alexandra M. Iezzi, John A. Power, Kristi L. Wallace, Christopher F. Waythomas
2020, Scientific Investigations Report 2020-5102
The Alaska Volcano Observatory responded to eruptions, significant and minor volcanic unrest, and seismic events at 16 volcanic centers in Alaska during 2017. The most notable volcanic activity consisted of a major eruption at Bogoslof Island, continuing intermittent dome growth and ash eruptions from Mount Cleveland, the end of the...
Geologic map of the greater Portland metropolitan area and surrounding region, Oregon and Washington
Ray E. Wells, Ralph A. Haugerud, Alan R. Niem, Wendy A. Niem, Lina Ma, Russell C. Evarts, Jim E. O'Connor, Ian P. Madin, David R. Sherrod, Marvin H. Beeson, Terry L. Tolan, Karen L. Wheeler, William B. Hanson, Michael G. Sawlan
2020, Scientific Investigations Map 3443
The Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro Metropolitan Area (metro area) has great scenic, natural, and cultural resources and is the major economic hub of Oregon. The metro area is subject to a variety of geologic hazards. Underthrusting of the oceanic plate along the Cascadia plate boundary fault, or megathrust, deforms the leading edge of...
Earthquake information products and tools from the Advanced National Seismic System (ANSS)
Lisa A. Wald
2020, Fact Sheet 2020-3042
This Fact Sheet describes post-earthquake products and tools provided by the Advanced National Seismic System (ANSS) through the U.S. Geological Survey Earthquake Hazards Program. The focus is on products that provide situational awareness immediately after significant earthquakes....
Financial risk innovation: Development of earthquake parametric triggers for contingent credit instruments
Guillermo Collich, Rafael Rosillo, Juan Martinez, David J. Wald, Juan Jose Durante
2020, Book chapter, Natural Disasters and Climate Change
The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) has developed financial risk management strategies for natural disasters focusing primarily on the emergency phase of the catastrophes where financial support is more cost-efficient and certainly most needed. The main IDB financial instrument to provide liquidity in the aftermath of catastrophic events is...
Geomorphic map of western Whatcom County, Washington
Dori J. Kovanen, Ralph A. Haugerud, Don J. Easterbrook
2020, Scientific Investigations Map 3406
Western Whatcom County has a rich history of glaciation, sea-level change, fluvial erosion and deposition, landsliding, nearby volcanic activity, and human landscape modification. This lidar-derived geomorphic map interprets this history from the form and position of the Earth’s surface.The geomorphic record is broken into nine phases, beginning with the peak...
Procedures for developing multi-period response spectra at non-conterminous United States sites
Mai Tong, Robert D. Hanson, Charles A Kircher, Sanaz Rezaeian, Nico Luco
2020, Report
This study complements proposals to the Provisions Update Committee of the Building Seismic Safety Council that would incorporate multi-period response spectra (MPRS) in the 2020 edition of the NEHRP Recommended Seismic Provisions for New Buildings and Other Structures (2020 NEHRP Provisions) and related proposals to the ASCE 7-22 Seismic Subcommittee...
ShakeAlert Earthquake Early Warning System Performance During the 2019 Ridgecrest Earthquake Sequence
Angela Chung, Men-Andrin Meier, Jennifer Andrews, Maren Bose, Brendan Crowell, Jeffrey J. McGuire, Deborah Smith
2020, Bulletin of the Seismological Society of America (110) 1904-1923
During July 2019, a sequence of earthquakes including a Mw6.4 foreshock and a Mw7.1 mainshock occurred near Ridgecrest, California. ShakeAlert, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) ShakeAlert public Earthquake Early Warning (EEW) system being developed for the U.S. West Coast, was operational during this time, though public alerting was only available...
Graphical Dispersion Plot Editor (DPE) for seismic-site characterization by using multiple surface-wave methods
Devin McPhillips, Alan K. Yong, Antony Martin, William J. Stephenson
2020, Open-File Report 2020-1065
IntroductionTo understand the behavior of potentially damaging ground motions during earthquakes, seismic-site effects are routinely characterized by using the dispersion of surface waves. Many methods exist to measure dispersion; these methods have various advantages and disadvantages, but they all yield dispersion data that must be inverted for shear-wave velocity. This...
Ten ways Mount St. Helens changed our world—The enduring legacy of the 1980 eruption
Carolyn L. Driedger, Jon J. Major, John S. Pallister, Michael A. Clynne, Seth C. Moran, Elizabeth G. Westby, John W. Ewert
2020, Fact Sheet 2020-3031
Mount St. Helens was once enjoyed for its serene beauty and was considered one of America’s most majestic volcanoes because of its perfect cone shape, similar to Japan’s beloved Mount Fuji. Nearby residents assumed that the mountain was solid and enduring. That perception changed during the early spring of 1980. Then,...
Ground failure triggered by shaking during the November 30, 2018, magnitude 7.1 Anchorage, Alaska, earthquake
Alex R. Grant, Randall W. Jibson, Robert C. Witter, Kate E. Allstadt, Eric M. Thompson, Adrian M. Bender
2020, Open-File Report 2020-1043
We developed an initial inventory of ground failure features from the November 30, 2018, magnitude 7.1 Anchorage earthquake. This inventory of 153 features is from ground-based observations soon after the earthquake (December 5–10) that include the presence or absence of liquefaction, landslides, and individual crack traces of lateral spreads...
2018 U.S. Geological Survey–California Geological Survey fault-imaging surveys across the Hollywood and Santa Monica Faults, Los Angeles County, California
Rufus D. Catchings, Janis Hernandez, Mark R. Goldman, Joanne H. Chan, Robert R. Sickler, Brian Olson, Coyn J. Criley
2020, Open-File Report 2020-1049
We acquired multiple types of seismic data across the Hollywood Fault in Hollywood, Calif., and the Santa Monica Fault in Beverly Hills, Calif., in May and June 2018. On the basis of our data, we infer near-surface locations of various traces of these faults.From two separate profiles across the Hollywood...
Airborne lidar and electro-optical imagery along surface ruptures of the 2019 Ridgecrest earthquake sequence, Southern California
Kenneth W. Hudnut, Benjamin A. Brooks, Katherine M. Scharer, Janis L. Hernandez, Timothy E. Dawson, Michael E. Oskin, J. Ramon Arrowsmith, Christine A. Goulet, Kelly Blake, Matthew A. Boggie, Stephan Bork, Craig L. Glennie, J.C. Fernandez-Diaz, Abhinav Singhania, Darren Hauser, Sven Sorhus
Benjamin A. Brooks, Katherine M. Scharer, Janis Hernandez, Timothy E. Dawson, Mike Oskin, Ramon Arrowsmith, Christine A. Goulet, Kelly Blake, Matt Boggs, Stephan Bork, Craig Glennie, J.C. Fernandez-Diaz, Abhinav Singhania, Darren L. Hauser, Sven Sorhus, editor(s)
2020, Seismological Research Letters (91) 2096-2107
Surface rupture from the 2019 Ridgecrest earthquake sequence, initially associated with the M 6.4 foreshock, occurred on July 4 on a ~17 km long, northeast-southwest oriented, left-lateral zone of faulting. Following the M 7.1 mainshock on July 5 (local time), extensive northwest-southeast-oriented, right-lateral faulting was then also mapped along a...
USGS “Did You Feel It?” — Science and lessons from twenty years of citizen science-based macroseismology
Vince Quitoriano, David J. Wald
2020, Frontiers in Earth Science (8)
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) “Did You Feel It?” (DYFI) system is an automatic method for rapidly collecting macroseismic intensity data from Internet users’ shaking and damage reports and for generating intensity maps immediately following felt earthquakes. DYFI has been in operation for nearly two decades (1999-2019) in the United...
Assessing geohazards to the Denali National Park road with geologic mapping
Adam M. Hudson, Chester A. Ruleman, Denny M Capps
2020, Fact Sheet 2020-3016
Denali National Park (DENA) is home to iconic and breathtaking landscapes surrounding the tallest mountain range in North America, the Alaska Range. The park, which covers 6 million acres, is a major draw for tourism and recreation, making it an important economic engine for central Alaska. However, the geologic forces...
Ground-motion predictions for California — Comparisons of three prediction equations
Erol Kalkan, Vladimir Graizer
2020, Open-File Report 2020-1028
We systematically evaluate datasets, functional forms, independent parameters of estimation, and resulting ground-motion predictions (as median and aleatory variability) of the Graizer and Kalkan (2015, 2016) (GK15) ground-motion prediction equation (GMPE) with the next generation of attenuation project (NGA-West2) models of Abrahamson and others (2014) (ASK14) and Boore and others...
Map depicting susceptibility to landslides triggered by intense rainfall, Puerto Rico
K. Stephen Hughes, William H. Schulz
2020, Open-File Report 2020-1022
Landslides in Puerto Rico range from nuisances to deadly events. Centuries of agricultural and urban modification of the landscape have perturbed many already unstable hillsides on the tropical island. One of the main triggers of mass wasting on the island is the high-intensity rainfall that is associated with tropical atmospheric...
Six-axis ground motion measurements of caldera collapse at Kīlauea Volcano, Hawaiʻi - More data, more puzzles?
Joachim Wassermann, Felix Bernauer, Brian Shiro, Ingrid A. Johanson, Frederic Guattari, Heiner Igel
2020, Geophysical Research Letters (47)
Near‐field recordings of large earthquakes and volcano‐induced events using traditional seismological instrumentation often suffer from unaccounted effects of local tilt and saturation of signals. Recent hardware advances have led to the development of the blueSeis‐3A, a very broadband, highly sensitive rotational motion sensor. We installed this sensor...
Seismicity of the Earth 1900–2018
Gavin P. Hayes, Gregory M. Smoczyk, Antonio H. Villasenor, Kevin P. Furlong, Harley M. Benz
2020, Scientific Investigations Map 3446
This map illustrates 119 years of global seismicity in the context of global plate tectonics and the Earth’s physiography. Primarily designed for use by earth scientists, engineers, and educators, this map provides a comprehensive overview of strong (magnitude [M] 5.5 and larger) earthquakes since 1900. The map clearly identifies the...
Potential duration of aftershocks of the 2020 southwestern Puerto Rico earthquake
Nicholas van der Elst, Jeanne L. Hardebeck, Andrew J. Michael
2020, Open-File Report 2020-1009
AbstractAftershocks (earthquakes clustered spatially and chronologically near the occurrence of a causative earthquake) are ongoing in southwestern Puerto Rico after a series of earthquakes, which include a magnitude 6.4 earthquake that occurred near Barrio Indios, Guayanilla, on January 7, 2020, and affected the surrounding area. This report estimates the expected...
Earthquakes, did you feel it?
David J. Wald, Vince Quitoriano, James W. Dewey
2020, Book chapter, Encyclopedia of Solid Earth Geophysics
The US Geological Survey (USGS) “Did You Feel It?”® (DYFI) system is an automated system for rapidly collecting macroseismic intensity data from Internet users’ shaking and damage reports and generating intensity maps immediately following earthquakes.Although the collection and assignment of DYFI-based Macroseismic Intensity (MI) data...
Caltech/USGS Southern California Seismic Network (SCSN) and Southern California Earthquake Data Center (SCEDC): Data availability for the 2019 Ridgecrest sequence
Egill Hauksson, Clara Yoon, Ellen Yu, Jennifer Andrews, Mark Alvarez, Rayo Bhadha, Valerie Thomas
2020, Seismological Research Letters (91) 1961-1970
The 2019 M6.4 and M7.1 Ridgecrest earthquake sequence occurred in the eastern California shear zone (ECSZ). The mainshock ruptured the Little Lake fault zone and aftershocks extended from the Garlock fault in the south, to the southern end of the 1872 M7.5 Owens Valley earthquake rupture in the north. We present data from...
Evaluation of ground‐motion models for U.S. Geological Survey seismic hazard forecasts: Hawaii tectonic earthquakes and volcanic eruptions
Daniel E. McNamara, Emily Wolin, Peter M. Powers, Allison Shumway, Morgan P. Moschetti, John Rekoske, Eric M. Thompson, Charles Mueller, Mark D. Petersen
2020, Bulletin of the Seismological Society of America (110) 666-688
The selection and weighting of ground‐motion models (GMMs) introduces a significant source of uncertainty in U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) National Seismic Hazard Modeling Project (NSHMP) forecasts. In this study, we evaluate 18 candidate GMMs using instrumental ground‐motion observations of horizontal peak ground acceleration (PGA) and 5%‐damped pseudospectral acceleration (0.02–10 s) for...
A domestic earthquake impact alert protocol based on the combined USGS PAGER and FEMA Hazus loss estimation systems
David J. Wald, Hope A. Seligson, Jesse Rozelle, Jordan Burns, Kristin Marano, Kishor S. Jaiswal, Mike Hearne, Douglas Bausch
2020, Earthquake Spectra (36) 164-182
The U.S. Geological Survey’s PAGER alert system provides rapid (10-20 min) but general loss estimates of ranges of fatalities and economic impact for significant global earthquakes. FEMA’s Hazus software, in contrast, provides time consuming (2-5 hours) but more detailed loss information quantified in terms of structural, social, and economic consequences...
