News | Natural Hazards

Jun 25, 2018 / Events, M9

The M9 research team presents at the 11th National Conference on Earthquake Engineering

On June 28th, the M9 research team will be presenting on the impacts of a magnitude 9 earthquake on the Pacific Northwest at the 11th National Conference on Earthquake Engineering.
The first of two sessions covers advances made by the M9 Project researchers in predicting the ground motions for the Magnitude 9 Cascadia event, characterizing those ground motions, and exploring the response of structural systems to such motions, including the effects of deep basin amplification and duration.

Jun 2, 2018 / M9

Coastal Hazards Resilience Network Annual Meeting

Connect and learn about hazards and resilience projects happening along Washington’s coast at the next Coastal Hazards Resilience Network (CHRN) Annual Meeting. The event will take place on June 5, 2018 from 9:00AM-4:00PM at University of Washington, South Campus Center (Room 303).

Oct 22, 2017 / Geology, M9

50 simulations show how a 9.0 Cascadia earthquake could play out

We know the “really big one” is coming. But what exactly is going to happen in cities along the coast?

Sep 20, 2017 / Geology, M9

Hacking a pressure sensor to track gradual motion along marine faults

Deep below the ocean’s surface, shielded from satellite signals, the gradual movement of the seafloor — including along faults that can unleash deadly earthquakes and tsunamis — goes largely undetected. As a result, we know distressingly little about motion along the fault that lies just off the Pacific Northwest coast.
University of Washington oceanographers are working with a local company to develop a simple new technique that could track seafloor movement in earthquake-prone coastal areas.

Sep 10, 2017 / Geology, M9

Land-sea experiment will track earthquakes, volcanoes along Alaska Peninsula

The National Science Foundation is funding the largest marine seismic-monitoring effort yet along the Alaska Peninsula, a region with frequent and diverse earthquake and volcanic activity. Involving aircraft and ships, the new Alaska Amphibious Community Seismic Experiment will be led by Cornell University in Ithaca, New York, with partners at the University of Washington and seven other research institutions.
“This effort will really change the information we have at our disposal for understanding the seismic properties of subduction zones,” said Emily Roland, a UW assistant professor of oceanography and one of nine principal investigators on the project.

Jun 27, 2017 / Geology, Water, M9

Distant earthquakes can cause underwater landslides

New research finds that large earthquakes can trigger underwater landslides thousands of miles away, weeks or months after the quake occurs.
Researchers analyzing data from ocean-bottom seismometers off the Washington-Oregon coast tied a series of underwater landslides on the Cascadia Subduction Zone to a 2012 magnitude-8.6 earthquake in the Indian Ocean — more than 8,000 miles away. These underwater landslides occurred intermittently for nearly four months after the April earthquake.

May 3, 2017 / Geology, M9

UW seismologist John Vidale elected to National Academy of Sciences

John E. Vidale, a University of Washington professor of Earth and space sciences, is among 84 new members and 21 foreign associates elected this week as members of the National Academy of Sciences. Academy members are recognized for their distinguished and continuing achievements in original research, according to a news release from the academy.
Vidale studies Earth’s interior, including earthquakes and volcanoes.

Apr 10, 2017 / Geology, M9

Pacific Northwest Seismic Network, USGS and partners launch West Coast earthquake early warning system

The U.S. Geological Survey and university, public and private partners held an event April 10 at the University of Washington to introduce the ShakeAlert earthquake early warning program as a unified, West Coast-wide system. The event also introduced the first pilot uses of the earthquake early warning in Washington and Oregon.
The first Pacific Northwest pilot users of the system are Bothell, Wash.-based RH2 Engineering, which will use the alerts to secure municipal water and sewer systems so these structures remain usable after a major quake.

Mar 31, 2016 / M9

The Interface between Natural Hazards and People

Associate Professor and M9 Project investigator, Joe Wartman, recently published an op-ed on the interface between natural hazards and people. The opinion article, titled “What we’ve learned from the deadly Oso, Washington landslide two years on”, can be accessed here.

Feb 17, 2016 / Geology, M9

Seattle Times editorial and Eugene Mayor call for earthquake early warning

Seattle Times editorial
“Congress is finally waking up to the need for better earthquake preparedness in the Pacific Northwest.”

Register-Guard opinion piece
Eugene Mayor Kitty Piercy – “A can-do, action-oriented approach to individual preparedness, a civic emphasis on resilience, and public and private investment in earthquake early warning are all steps that will keep us safer.”