Emily Brodsky, Ph.D.
University of California, Santa Cruz
Earthquakes Triggered by Seismic Waves
Wednesday - May 6, 2009
Pacific Forum – 3:00 p.m.
Everyone knows that aftershocks follow large earthquakes. But why? Embarassingly, the mechanism by which earthquakes trigger other earthquakes is still an unresolved question in seismology.
This talk will discuss evidence that the ground shaking from seismic waves plays a key role in this process. Starting with clear observations of distant triggering from seismic waves, we will review the role of dynamic triggering in generating earthquakes. Using a large dataset of distant and local triggering, we will ultimately show that triggering at all distances can be well-predicted based on the amplitude of the seismic waves from previous earthquakes.
Next: May 13 - Steve D'Hondt