Preliminary results from a study related to the subduction of the Juan De Fuca Plate beneath the North American Plate off the coast of Washington and British Columbia indicate that the potential mega-thrust earthquake could strike closer to the Seattle-Tacoma area than previously thought. I believe this project is the same one where I posted their press release about two years ago. According to the article, the average return period for these mega-thrust earthquakes is 400 to 500 years with a range between 300 and 800 and the estimated magnitude of around 9.0. The last mega-thrust earthquake along the Cascadia Subduction Zone was in January of 1700. Previously, scientists predicted the earthquake would be centered just off the coast, they now think it could be 30 miles or more inland, under the Olympic Peninsula to the west of the Seattle-Tacoma area. Source: Physorg.com via Geology.com.
Geologic Hazards
Christchurch liquefaction prone soils make rebuilding difficult |
This article notes that the combination of shallow water table and crummy soils make it difficult to rebuild safely in the Christchurch, New Zealand business district. Another interesting item mentioned in the article is that […]
Available Resources
2019 Peck Lecture, Misko Cubrinovsky – Observations and Findings from Christchurch
Dr. Misko Cubrinovsky was the Ralph B. Peck Award winner at the 2019 Geo-Congress conference of the Geo-Institute in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. His lecture was on Observations and Findings from Christchurch related to the devastating 2011 […]
Geologic Hazards
New Zealand city council bans entry to 500 homes over geotechnical hazards
The Christ Church City Council has issued a notice banning entry to over 500 homes because of risks associated with rockfall, landslides, cliff collapse and other geotechnical problems exacerbated by recent earthquakes. [Source: Scoop News]