USGS scientists Kate Scharer, Richard Lease, and Adrian Bender excavate a marine terrace elevated tens of meters above sea level on the west side of the Fairweather Fault. Location: Icy Point, Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska.
Characterizing the Active Queen Charlotte-Fairweather Fault System
This research aims to better characterize the earthquake potential of the southern Fairweather Fault in order to provide more accurate fault source data for the USGS National Seismic Hazard Map. Our approach interrogates lidar data and satellite imagery, applies paleoseismological methods to examine earthquake history, and leverages partnerships with USGS scientists from Colorado and California, the National Park Service, NOAA, and the Army Corps of Engineers Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory.
Return to Geology >> Hazards >> Alaska Earthquake and Tsunami Hazards
Mapping the Queen Charlotte-Fairweather Fault
![An animation showing tectonic faults across the Eastern Pacific Ocean from space, including the Queen Charlotte-Fairweather fault](https://d9-wret.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/assets/palladium/production/s3fs-public/styles/full_width/public/media/images/QCF_Version5_1.gif?itok=0G2Tp0uQ)
The magnitude 7.8 Lituya Bay earthquake resulted from a 260-km long rupture of the Fairweather Fault in southeast Alaska, yet we know little about how often events of this size reoccur. Between 2012 and 2014, renewed seismic events on the Queen Charlotte-Fairweather Fault system caused a series of moderate to large earthquakes, including the 2012 M7.8 Haida Gwaii earthquake, the 2013 M7.5 Craig earthquake and the 2014 M6.0 Palma Bay earthquake. The 2014 earthquake triggered an undersea slump that severed a fiber optic cable, which serves communities in the greater Gustavus-Juneau area, including the state capitol. We are conducting comprehensive onshore and offshore geologic and geophysical investigations to fully characterize the seismic potential of the Queen Charlotte-Fairweather Fault system in southeast Alaska. Specifically, these investigations include (1) acquisition and interpretation of remotely sensed topographic data, including lidar, satellite imagery and legacy aerial photography; (2) mapping of tectonic geomorphology and active traces of the southern Fairweather Fault; and (3) investigation of earthquake recurrence intervals, slip-per-earthquake, and style of deformation through field investigations that include paleoseismic trenching where practicable.
![3 maps of ocean floor off the west coast of Canada, and SE Alaska](https://d9-wret.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/assets/palladium/production/s3fs-public/styles/full_width/public/thumbnails/image/NOAA_PressRelease.png?itok=KcOne6Nw)
Below are other science projects associated with this project.
Alaska Earthquake and Tsunami Hazards
Alaska Seismic Hazard Map
Alaska-Aleutian Subduction Zone Studies
Below are data and web tools related to this project.
A bathymetric terrain model of multibeam sonar data collected between 2005 and 2018 along the Queen Charlotte Fault System in the Eastern Gulf of Alaska from Cross Sound, Alaska to Queen Charlotte Sound, Canada
Multibeam bathymetry and acoustic-backscatter data collected in 2017 and 2018 of Noyes Submarine Canyon and vicinity, southeast Alaska
Multibeam bathymetry and acoustic-backscatter data collected in 2015 near Cross Sound, southeast Alaska, during field activity 2015-629-FA
Radiocarbon and Luminescence Data for Fairweather Fault Investigation, Glacier Bay National Park, Southeast Alaska
Multibeam bathymetry and backscatter data collected in the eastern Gulf of Alaska during USGS Field Activity 2016-625-FA using a Reson 7160 multibeam echosounder
Below are multimedia items associated with this project.
![Three people looking in a hole they dug](https://d9-wret.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/assets/palladium/production/s3fs-public/styles/masonry/public/thumbnails/image/marine_terrace_along_Fairweather_Fault_6-5-2017_Rob_Witter_0.jpg?itok=2pwlE-77)
USGS scientists Kate Scharer, Richard Lease, and Adrian Bender excavate a marine terrace elevated tens of meters above sea level on the west side of the Fairweather Fault. Location: Icy Point, Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska.
![Two people on a gravel surface next to a cliff](https://d9-wret.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/assets/palladium/production/s3fs-public/styles/masonry/public/thumbnails/image/river_terraces_elevated_along_Fairweather_Fault_6-1-2017_Rob_Witter_0.jpg?itok=AXE8O5VZ)
USGS scientists Richard Lease and Adrian Bender examine river terraces elevated tens of meters above the modern channel level on the west side of the Fairweather Fault. Location: Kaknau Creek, Icy Point, Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska.
USGS scientists Richard Lease and Adrian Bender examine river terraces elevated tens of meters above the modern channel level on the west side of the Fairweather Fault. Location: Kaknau Creek, Icy Point, Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska.
USGS Research Geologist Chris DuRoss investigates earthquake-faulted stratigraphy exposed in a hand-dug trench across the Fairweather Fault scarp. Location: Crillon Lake, Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska.
USGS Research Geologist Chris DuRoss investigates earthquake-faulted stratigraphy exposed in a hand-dug trench across the Fairweather Fault scarp. Location: Crillon Lake, Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska.
USGS scientists Adrian Bender and Peter Haeussler walk along the base of a ~10 m tall escarpment formed during past ground-rupturing earthquakes on the Fairweather Fault. Location: Crillon Lake, Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska
USGS scientists Adrian Bender and Peter Haeussler walk along the base of a ~10 m tall escarpment formed during past ground-rupturing earthquakes on the Fairweather Fault. Location: Crillon Lake, Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska
USGS Geologist Adrian Bender surveys a trace of the 1958 Fairweather Fault earthquake surface rupture. The trace forms a linear, uphill-facing, 1-2 m tall escarpment flanked by trees that were likely tilted during the 1958 earthquake. Location: Crillon Lake, Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska.
USGS Geologist Adrian Bender surveys a trace of the 1958 Fairweather Fault earthquake surface rupture. The trace forms a linear, uphill-facing, 1-2 m tall escarpment flanked by trees that were likely tilted during the 1958 earthquake. Location: Crillon Lake, Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska.
![Map illustration showing fault lines and direction of tectonic plate movement along a stretch of the Alaskan coastline.](https://d9-wret.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/assets/palladium/production/s3fs-public/styles/masonry/public/thumbnails/image/Alaska1Map1.jpg?itok=TLo5GoqB)
Study region along the Queen Charlotte-Fairweather fault offshore southeastern Alaska. Rectangles show locations of the two USGS-led marine geophysical surveys in May and August 2015. The third cruise was offshore Haida Gwaii, British Columbia, and southern Alaska in September 2015.
Study region along the Queen Charlotte-Fairweather fault offshore southeastern Alaska. Rectangles show locations of the two USGS-led marine geophysical surveys in May and August 2015. The third cruise was offshore Haida Gwaii, British Columbia, and southern Alaska in September 2015.
Below are publications associated with this project.
Systematic mapping of the ocean-continent transform plate boundary of the Queen Charlotte fault system, southeastern Alaska and western British Columbia—A preliminary bathymetric terrain model
Geomorphic expression and slip rate of the Fairweather fault, southeast Alaska, and evidence for predecessors of the 1958 rupture
Strain partitioning in southeastern Alaska: Is the Chatham Strait Fault active?
Neotectonics of interior Alaska and the late Quaternary slip rate along the Denali fault system
Sculpted by water, elevated by earthquakes—The coastal landscape of Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska
Eastern Denali Fault surface trace map, eastern Alaska and Yukon, Canada
The Peters Hills basin, a Neogene wedge-top basin on the Broad Pass thrust fault, south-central Alaska
Below are news stories associated with this project.
This research aims to better characterize the earthquake potential of the southern Fairweather Fault in order to provide more accurate fault source data for the USGS National Seismic Hazard Map. Our approach interrogates lidar data and satellite imagery, applies paleoseismological methods to examine earthquake history, and leverages partnerships with USGS scientists from Colorado and California, the National Park Service, NOAA, and the Army Corps of Engineers Cold Regions Research and Engineering Laboratory.
Return to Geology >> Hazards >> Alaska Earthquake and Tsunami Hazards
Mapping the Queen Charlotte-Fairweather Fault
![An animation showing tectonic faults across the Eastern Pacific Ocean from space, including the Queen Charlotte-Fairweather fault](https://d9-wret.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/assets/palladium/production/s3fs-public/styles/full_width/public/media/images/QCF_Version5_1.gif?itok=0G2Tp0uQ)
The magnitude 7.8 Lituya Bay earthquake resulted from a 260-km long rupture of the Fairweather Fault in southeast Alaska, yet we know little about how often events of this size reoccur. Between 2012 and 2014, renewed seismic events on the Queen Charlotte-Fairweather Fault system caused a series of moderate to large earthquakes, including the 2012 M7.8 Haida Gwaii earthquake, the 2013 M7.5 Craig earthquake and the 2014 M6.0 Palma Bay earthquake. The 2014 earthquake triggered an undersea slump that severed a fiber optic cable, which serves communities in the greater Gustavus-Juneau area, including the state capitol. We are conducting comprehensive onshore and offshore geologic and geophysical investigations to fully characterize the seismic potential of the Queen Charlotte-Fairweather Fault system in southeast Alaska. Specifically, these investigations include (1) acquisition and interpretation of remotely sensed topographic data, including lidar, satellite imagery and legacy aerial photography; (2) mapping of tectonic geomorphology and active traces of the southern Fairweather Fault; and (3) investigation of earthquake recurrence intervals, slip-per-earthquake, and style of deformation through field investigations that include paleoseismic trenching where practicable.
![3 maps of ocean floor off the west coast of Canada, and SE Alaska](https://d9-wret.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/assets/palladium/production/s3fs-public/styles/full_width/public/thumbnails/image/NOAA_PressRelease.png?itok=KcOne6Nw)
Below are other science projects associated with this project.
Alaska Earthquake and Tsunami Hazards
Alaska Seismic Hazard Map
Alaska-Aleutian Subduction Zone Studies
Below are data and web tools related to this project.
A bathymetric terrain model of multibeam sonar data collected between 2005 and 2018 along the Queen Charlotte Fault System in the Eastern Gulf of Alaska from Cross Sound, Alaska to Queen Charlotte Sound, Canada
Multibeam bathymetry and acoustic-backscatter data collected in 2017 and 2018 of Noyes Submarine Canyon and vicinity, southeast Alaska
Multibeam bathymetry and acoustic-backscatter data collected in 2015 near Cross Sound, southeast Alaska, during field activity 2015-629-FA
Radiocarbon and Luminescence Data for Fairweather Fault Investigation, Glacier Bay National Park, Southeast Alaska
Multibeam bathymetry and backscatter data collected in the eastern Gulf of Alaska during USGS Field Activity 2016-625-FA using a Reson 7160 multibeam echosounder
Below are multimedia items associated with this project.
![Three people looking in a hole they dug](https://d9-wret.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/assets/palladium/production/s3fs-public/styles/masonry/public/thumbnails/image/marine_terrace_along_Fairweather_Fault_6-5-2017_Rob_Witter_0.jpg?itok=2pwlE-77)
USGS scientists Kate Scharer, Richard Lease, and Adrian Bender excavate a marine terrace elevated tens of meters above sea level on the west side of the Fairweather Fault. Location: Icy Point, Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska.
USGS scientists Kate Scharer, Richard Lease, and Adrian Bender excavate a marine terrace elevated tens of meters above sea level on the west side of the Fairweather Fault. Location: Icy Point, Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska.
![Two people on a gravel surface next to a cliff](https://d9-wret.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/assets/palladium/production/s3fs-public/styles/masonry/public/thumbnails/image/river_terraces_elevated_along_Fairweather_Fault_6-1-2017_Rob_Witter_0.jpg?itok=AXE8O5VZ)
USGS scientists Richard Lease and Adrian Bender examine river terraces elevated tens of meters above the modern channel level on the west side of the Fairweather Fault. Location: Kaknau Creek, Icy Point, Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska.
USGS scientists Richard Lease and Adrian Bender examine river terraces elevated tens of meters above the modern channel level on the west side of the Fairweather Fault. Location: Kaknau Creek, Icy Point, Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska.
USGS Research Geologist Chris DuRoss investigates earthquake-faulted stratigraphy exposed in a hand-dug trench across the Fairweather Fault scarp. Location: Crillon Lake, Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska.
USGS Research Geologist Chris DuRoss investigates earthquake-faulted stratigraphy exposed in a hand-dug trench across the Fairweather Fault scarp. Location: Crillon Lake, Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska.
USGS scientists Adrian Bender and Peter Haeussler walk along the base of a ~10 m tall escarpment formed during past ground-rupturing earthquakes on the Fairweather Fault. Location: Crillon Lake, Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska
USGS scientists Adrian Bender and Peter Haeussler walk along the base of a ~10 m tall escarpment formed during past ground-rupturing earthquakes on the Fairweather Fault. Location: Crillon Lake, Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska
USGS Geologist Adrian Bender surveys a trace of the 1958 Fairweather Fault earthquake surface rupture. The trace forms a linear, uphill-facing, 1-2 m tall escarpment flanked by trees that were likely tilted during the 1958 earthquake. Location: Crillon Lake, Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska.
USGS Geologist Adrian Bender surveys a trace of the 1958 Fairweather Fault earthquake surface rupture. The trace forms a linear, uphill-facing, 1-2 m tall escarpment flanked by trees that were likely tilted during the 1958 earthquake. Location: Crillon Lake, Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska.
![Map illustration showing fault lines and direction of tectonic plate movement along a stretch of the Alaskan coastline.](https://d9-wret.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/assets/palladium/production/s3fs-public/styles/masonry/public/thumbnails/image/Alaska1Map1.jpg?itok=TLo5GoqB)
Study region along the Queen Charlotte-Fairweather fault offshore southeastern Alaska. Rectangles show locations of the two USGS-led marine geophysical surveys in May and August 2015. The third cruise was offshore Haida Gwaii, British Columbia, and southern Alaska in September 2015.
Study region along the Queen Charlotte-Fairweather fault offshore southeastern Alaska. Rectangles show locations of the two USGS-led marine geophysical surveys in May and August 2015. The third cruise was offshore Haida Gwaii, British Columbia, and southern Alaska in September 2015.
Below are publications associated with this project.
Systematic mapping of the ocean-continent transform plate boundary of the Queen Charlotte fault system, southeastern Alaska and western British Columbia—A preliminary bathymetric terrain model
Geomorphic expression and slip rate of the Fairweather fault, southeast Alaska, and evidence for predecessors of the 1958 rupture
Strain partitioning in southeastern Alaska: Is the Chatham Strait Fault active?
Neotectonics of interior Alaska and the late Quaternary slip rate along the Denali fault system
Sculpted by water, elevated by earthquakes—The coastal landscape of Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska
Eastern Denali Fault surface trace map, eastern Alaska and Yukon, Canada
The Peters Hills basin, a Neogene wedge-top basin on the Broad Pass thrust fault, south-central Alaska
Below are news stories associated with this project.