U. S. Geological Survey, Golden, Colorado
Rapid Earthquake Information: Citizen Science and New Tools for Emergency Response
Recent technological advances in computer and communication technology, as well as developments in seismic networks in the United States, have allowed seismologists to rapidly respond to earthquakes in revolutionary ways. Rather than limiting post-earthquake information to simply epicenter and magnitude, we can now rapidly provide maps of the intensity of shaking over the region affected by a damaging earthquake.
One system, called “ShakeMap”, relies on shaking levels recorded at seismic stations to map out the distribution of shaking, pointing to the areas most shaking and likely to have experienced damage. These maps now provide the basis for emergency response coordination, estimation of damage and losses, and information for the public and the media.
The second system, the Community Internet Intensity Maps (more commonly referred to as "Did You Feel it?") is a unique approach to Citizen Science. By collecting reports of what was felt and observed earthquake effects through the World Wide Web immediately after the shaking subsides, we can rapidly map out the extent and distribution of shaking and damage in any area of the country. Remarkably, the public has taken kindly to “Did You Feel it?”. In fact to date, we have logged over 350,000 individual entries to our questionnaire nationwide. This includes entries from all 50 states, plus the US Territories, indicating that the earthquake problem is indeed nationwide!
In this lecture I will describe the science and technology behind these two new systems, including the complex nature of ground shaking and its effects on people and the built environment.
About
Dr. Wald
Education:
- B.S., St. Lawrence University, Physics & Geology, 1984
- M.S. University of Arizona, Geophysics, 1988
- Ph.D., California Institute of Technology, Geophysics, 1993
Honors:
- National Research Council of the National Academy of Sciences Postdoctoral Research Associate, 1993-1995
- Southern California Emergency Services Association’s Diamond Award for outstanding service and support to the Field of Emergency Management, 2000.
- IRIS/SSA Distinguished Lecturer, 2003-2004
Positions held:
- Geophysicist, U. S. Geological Survey, 1993-
- Adjunct Associate Professor in Geophysics, Colorado School of Mines, 2003-
- Visiting Associate in Geophysics, California Institute of Technology, 1994-2003
- Seismologist, Woodward-Clyde Consultants, 1986-1992
- Associate Editor, Bulletin of the Seismological Society of America, 1996-2000
Brief summary of recent
research and activities:
My scientific interests include the evaluation of ground motion amplification
in basin environments, the estimation of rupture process from earthquakes;
analysis of ground motion hazards, and earthquake source physics. I am
also involved in Real-time Seismology including the generation of real-time
ground motion shaking and intensity maps for damaging earthquakes. I developed
and manage both the ShakeMap system and the Community Internet Intensity
Maps (popularly called “Did You Feel it?”) for post-earthquake
response and information.
Popular articles and
broadcasts about my work appeared in:
New York Times, Los Angeles Times, Christian Science Monitor, USA Today,
San Francisco Chronicle, Associated Press, PBS, CNN, FOX, ABC, CBS, MS-NBC,
Learning Channel, History Channel, TechTV, BBC, NHK, NPR, Voice of America.
Societies:
- Seismological Society of America
- American Geophysical Union
- Earthquake Engineering Research Institute
Some recent publications:
Wald, D. J., V. Quitoriano, T. H. Heaton, H. Kanamori, C. W. Scrivner, and C. B. Worden (1999). TriNet "ShakeMaps": Rapid Generation of Peak Ground Motion and Intensity Maps for Earthquakes in Southern California, Earthquake Spectra, Vol. 15, No. 3, 537-556.
Wald, D. J., V. Quitoriano, T. H. Heaton, H. Kanamori (1999). Relationship between Peak Ground Acceleration, Peak Ground Velocity, and Modified Mercalli Intensity for Earthquakes in California, Earthquake Spectra, Vol. 15, No. 3, 557-564.
Wald, D. J., V. Quitoriano, L. Dengler, and J. W. Dewey (1999). Utilization of the Internet for Rapid Community Intensity Maps, Seismological Research Letters, 70, No.6, 680-697.
Wald, D. J., and R.W. Graves (2001). Resolution Analysis of Finite Fault Source Inversion Using 1D and 3D Green's Functions, Part II: Combining Seismic and Geodetic Data, Journal of Geophysical Research, 106, No. B5, p. 8767.
