Publications

Recent advances in downscaling climate model precipitation predictions now yield spatially explicit patterns of rainfall that could be used to estimate shallow landslide susceptibility over large areas. In California, the United States Geological Survey is exploring community emergency response to the possible effects of a very large simulated storm event and to do so it has generated downscaled p

No abstract available.

Pore-fluid pressure plays a crucial role in debris flows because it counteracts normal stresses at grain contacts and thereby reduces intergranular friction. Pore-pressure feedback accompanying debris deformation is particularly important during the onset of debrisflow motion, when it can dramatically influence the balance of forces governing downslope acceleration. We consider further effects of

At 0258 Hawaii‐Aleutian Standard Time (HST) on 19 March 2008, a small explosion scattered altered and fresh lithic debris across a 40‐hectare area at the summit of Kilauea volcano. This explosion, the first recorded there since 1924, issued from a vent about 35 meters wide along the east wall of Halema'uma'u Crater. Ballistic fragments—the largest measuring nearly 1 meter across—were propelled upw

The U.S. Geological Survey's (USGS) Prompt Assessment of Global Earthquakes for Response (PAGER) system, operational since mid 2007, rapidly estimates the most affected locations and the population exposure at different levels of shaking intensities. The PAGER system has significantly improved the way aid agencies determine the scale of response needed in the aftermath of an earthquake. For exampl

The first eruptive activity at Kīlauea Volcano’s summit in 25 years began in March 2008 with the opening of a 35-m-wide vent in Halema‘uma‘u crater. The new activity has produced prominent very-long-period (VLP) signals corresponding with two new behaviors: episodic tremor bursts and small explosive events, both of which represent degassing events from the top of the lava column. Previous work has

We present a detailed description and users manual for a new tool to evaluate seismic station performance and characteristics by providing quick and easy transitions between visualizations of the frequency and time domains. The software is based on the probability density functions (PDF) of power spectral densities (PSD) (McNamara and Buland, 2004) and builds on the original development of the PDF

No abstract available.

No abstract available.

The operational version of the United States Geological Survey one-minute Dst index (a global geomagnetic disturbance-intensity index for scientific studies and definition of space-weather effects) uses either four- or three-station input (including Honolulu, Hawaii; San Juan, Puerto Rico; Hermanus, South Africa; and Kakioka, Japan; or Honolulu, San Juan and Guam) and a method based on the U.S. Ge

Rock fall from limestone cliffs at Timpanogos Cave National Monument in American Fork Canyon east of Provo, Utah, is a common occurrence. The cave is located in limestone cliffs high on the southern side of the canyon. One fatality in 1933 led to the construction of rock fall shelters at the cave entrance and exit in 1976. Numerous rock fall incidents, including a near miss in 2000 in the vicinity

This handbook provides information to residents of the Central United States about the threat of earthquakes in that area, particularly along the New Madrid seismic zone, and explains how to prepare for, survive, and recover from such events. It explains the need for concern about earthquakes for those residents and describes what one can expect during and after an earthquake. Much is known about