Sandwiched between tectonic plates are layers of material that show up as thin shadows on seismic tomography, a kind of CT scan of the Earth. For years, scientists assumed the anomalies were signs of highly pressurized water squeezed into densely packed rock and that the fluid acted as a kind of hair-trigger on earthquake faults.… Continue Reading Are Deep Fluids Behind the Largest Earthquakes? ‘Not So Fast!’ Says UT Graduate Student
Articles about earthquake research and scientists at the University of Texas Institute for Geophysics. For more information contact costa@ig.utexas.edu
Seismic Shockwave Pattern May Be Redirecting Earthquake Damage
New research from The University of Texas at Austin could change the way scientists think about potential damage from earthquakes. The study examined data from one of the densest seismic arrays ever deployed and found that earthquakes emit their strongest seismic shockwaves in four opposing directions. The effect, which leaves a pattern resembling a four-leaf… Continue Reading Seismic Shockwave Pattern May Be Redirecting Earthquake Damage
Xiaohua “Eric” Xu: Research Associate
NOVEMBER 1, 2021 By Constantino Panagopulos When Xiaohua Xu analyzed high- resolution satellite images of the 2019 Ridgecrest earthquakes, he found that they had lit up clusters of previously unknown faults in the surrounding crust that seemed to move backward immediately after the earthquakes. The analysis, which was published in Science when he was a postdoctoral researcher… Continue Reading Xiaohua “Eric” Xu: Research Associate
Fate of Sinking Tectonic Plates is Revealed
Our world’s surface is a jumble of jostling tectonic plates, with new ones emerging as others are pulled under. The ongoing cycle keeps our continents in motion and drives life on Earth. But what happens when a plate disappears into the planet’s interior? The question has long puzzled scientists because conventional wisdom said that sinking… Continue Reading Fate of Sinking Tectonic Plates is Revealed
Earthquake Forecasts Move a Step Closer to Reality
Earthquakes — like lightning — strike unpredictably. The Earth’s tectonic plates, however, hide subtle warnings that a major fault may soon break. Like forecasting a thunderstorm, knowing how to read the warnings could help communities protect lives, infrastructure and local economies. For decades, scientists have struggled to reliably give forecasts for major earthquake hotspots, but… Continue Reading Earthquake Forecasts Move a Step Closer to Reality
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