SEISMIC GEOLOGY: THE PACIFIC STATES!
RICHARD ELY ~ The Geology Dude
Richard will review the current state of knowledge of the
seismic geology of the Pacific states. Will the ‘Big One’ hit sooner or
later? Strike slip faults of the San Andreas system pervade the California
Coast Ranges south of Cape Mendocino, whereas the Cascadia subduction zone
extends north from there to Vancouver Island. California has the better
of this deal: smaller quakes on the average (the Cascadia subduction zone is
capable of magnitude 9.0 earthquakes), and fewer volcanoes, which can be very,
very messy neighbors. Inland from the coastal regions, normal
(extensional) faulting predominates in the Great Basin, and small scale thrust
faulting is found in the Columbia Plateau basalt field. Please feel free to
bring your favorite earthquake story to share!
