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Assessing the Nation's Earthquakes The Health and Future of Regional Seismograph Networks (1990) / Chapter Skim
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2. Contributions to Date of Regional Seismic Networks
Pages 11-16

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From page 11...
... Briefly, the contributions include the improved detection and more accurate location of earthquakes, especially those of lower energy levels; greater precision in focal depth determinations; enhanced monitoring of seismic energy release as a function of space and time; refined determinations of the attenuation characteristics of seismic waves; three-dimensional descriptions of the seismic velocity structure of the interior of the earth; and more reliable specification of the earthquake faulting process. Thus the fundamental contributions from seismic networks are intrinsically observational, and these observational data make possible a wide range of derived contributions that are of direct benefit to both science and society.
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From page 12...
... In addition, data from regional seismic networks are essential to the safe siting of nuclear and other hazardous waste repositories as well as large, unique engineering structures such as the proposed Superconducting Super Collider. Siting such structures safely requires an already-developed adequate seismicity data base; once a site has been proposed, it is not possible to wait for data to be gathered.
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From page 13...
... However, the benefits to society that would result from this ability are so enormous that we must continue these efforts. The dense spatial coverage provided by regional seismic networks has been directly exploited in recent studies of crustal velocity structure.
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From page 14...
... The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center at Honolulu, Hawaii, is an international cooperative effort to provide tsunami watches and warnings to the Pacific region. Onshore regional seismic networks contribute to the detection and location of submarine earthquakes that are potentially tsunamigenic.
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From page 15...
... The swarm-like series of magnitude 5.5-6.0 earthquakes that occurred in 1978 near the Long Valley caldera in eastern California raises the possibility of yet another type of volcanic earthquake, one due either to the abrupt injection of magma into a dike or to a complex shear failure on fault planes of differing orientations (Hill, 1987~. Clearly, much work remains to be done to understand what the various types of volcanic earthquakes imply about the volcanic processes that affect the westernmost states.
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From page 16...
... Students at universities that operate regional seismic networks unquestionably have an enhanced educational experience. The incoming digital data stream from multiple sensors provides hands-on opportunities to apply and develop the seismological theories developed in the lecture hall and the laboratory.
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Key Terms

  • regional seismic
  • volcanic earthquakes
  • seismic network
  • velocity structure
  • san andreas

  • seismic source
  • digital data
  • seismic hazard
  • multiple sensors
  • volcanic processes

  • seismic zones
  • fundamental contributions
  • andreas fault
  • detailed analyses
  • provide tsunami

  • predicting earthquakes
  • highly accurate
  • combined onshore
  • direct benefit
  • dissertation investigations

  • shallow movements
  • realtime acquisition
  • depth determinations
  • accurate definition
  • resolving power

  • focal mechanism
  • earthquake ground
  • parkfield section
  • current federal
  • networks unquestionably


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