Heather Lackey (SFSU), Dave Schumaker (SFSU) and students from Burton and O'Connell High Schools
According to the United States Geological Survey (USGS), the San Francisco Bay Area has a 62% probability of experiencing a major earthquake in the next 30 years. The Hayward fault and the San Andreas fault are the two main faults in the Bay Area that are capable of producing earthquakes of magnitude 6.7 or larger - a size that could profoundly affect many of the 7 million people who live in the Bay Area. The Hayward fault has a 27% probability of producing a major earthquake in next 30 years, and the San Andreas fault has a 21% probability. Our research group, which is part of the SF-ROCKS high school outreach program, studied the Hayward and San Andreas faults. The goal of our project was to observe these faults at various locations, measure the effects of creep, and to present the data in Google Earth, a freeware tool for the public to easily view and interact with these and other seismic-hazard data. We examined the Hayward and San Andreas faults (as mapped by USGS scientists) in Google Earth to identify various sites where we could possibly find evidence of fault creep. We next visited these sites in the field where we mapped the location using a hand-held Global Positioning System, identified and photographed fault evidence, and measured offset features with a ruler or tape measure. Fault evidence included en echelon shears in pavement, warped buildings, and offset features such as sidewalks. Fault creep offset measurements range from 1.5 – 19 cm. We also identified possible evidence of fault creep along the San Andreas fault in South San Francisco where it had not been previously described. In Google Earth, we plotted our field sites, linked photographs showing evidence of faulting, and included detailed captions to explain the photographs. We will design a webpage containing the data in a Keyhole Markup Language (KML) file format for display in Google Earth. Any interested person needs only to download the free version of Google Earth software and visit our website to download and view the KML file. Presenting our data in this format provides a new and powerful means for students, scientists, and the public to learn about seismic hazards in the Bay Area.
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Downloads
The following links download KML (Keyhole Markup Language) files that can be used with Google Earth to view pictures and locations that our group visited during the course of this research project.
- Fault Creep Evidence along the Hayward and San Andreas Faults - [Google Maps Link]
- 1906 Earthquake Comparisons and Evidence of Damage - [Google Maps Link]
Other links
- Google Earth
- Hayward Fault Virtual Helicopter Tour
- USGS 1906 Virtual Tour