David J Wald
Dr. Wald is a Seismologist with the USGS in Golden. He is involved in research, development & operations of several real-time earthquake information systems at the USGS National Earthquake Information Center. He developed and manages “ShakeMap”, “Did You Feel it?”, & is responsible for developing other systems for post-earthquake response & pre-earthquake mitigation, including ShakeCast.
Wald's scientific interests include the characterization of rupture processes from complex recent and historic earthquakes using combined geodetic, teleseismic, and strong motion data; waveform modelling and inversion; analysis of ground motion hazards and site effects; earthquake source physics; and modelling earthquake-induced landslides, liquefaction, and losses, macroseismic intensity, building damage, financial and human impact, rapid damage and impact assessment, earthquake scenario development and mitigation planning and drills, and communication with the media, public, and emergency managers.
Previously at Caltech, and now at the Colorado School of Mines, Wald has advised dozens of post-doctoral, graduate, and undergraduate student research projects. Wald directly supervises 10 PhD level scientists and 5 five BS and MS level support staff, and supervises several students. Wald serves on several PhD committees at this time. This research has resulted in more than 450 professional publications that David has authored or co-authored, including journal papers, USGS publication series, conference papers, and published abstracts.
Education:
Post-doctoral Fellow, Geophysics, National Research Council, USGS, Pasadena, 1995
Ph.D., Geophysics, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, 1993
M.S., Geophysics, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, 1986
B.S., Geology & Physics, St. Lawrence University, Canton, NY, 1984
Honors and Awards
2025 - Alfred E. Alquist Special Recognition Medal of Earthquake Engineering Research Institute
2023 - Presidential Rank Award
2023 - USGS Shoemaker Lifetime Achievement Award in Communications
2023 - American Geophysical Union Fellow
2018—2023 - Editor-in-Chief, Earthquake Spectra
2021 - Joyner Lectureship, Seismological Society of America and the Earthquake Engineering Research Institute
2015—2017 - Board of Directors, Earthquake Engineering Research Institute
2016 - Meritorious Service Award (MSA), Department of the Interior
2015 - Distinguished Lecturer, Earthquake Engineering Research Institute
2015—2017 - Board of Directors, Earthquake Engineering Research Institute
2009—2011 - Board of Directors, Seismological Society of America
2010 - Superior Service Award (SSA), Department of the Interior
2009 - Frank Press Public Service Award of the Seismological Society of America
2004 - Seismological Society of America’s Distinguished Lecturer
2003 - U.S.G.S. Shoemaker Award. Excellence in Communications
Science and Products
Filter Total Items: 160
Integrated strategies for enhanced rapid earthquake shaking, ground failure, and impact estimation employing remotely sensed and ground truth constraints
Estimating earthquake impacts using physical or empirical models is challenging because the three components of loss estimation-shaking, exposure, and vulnerabilities-entail inherent uncertainties. Loss modeling in near-real-time adds additional uncertainties, yet expectations for actionable information with a reasonable level of confidence in the results are real. The modeling...
Authors
David J. Wald, Susu Xu, H. Noh, Joshua Dimasaka, Kishor S. Jaiswal, Kate E. Allstadt, Davis T. Engler
Development of a companion questionnaire for “Did You Feel It?”: Assessing response in earthquakes where an earthquake early warning may have been received
Earthquake early warning (EEW) systems are relatively new technologies having first emerged as regional systems in the 1990s. Japan was the first nation to develop and implement a nationwide system in October 2007, and in the United States, ShakeAlert® became available on the entire length of the US West Coast in May 2021. Assessing how EEW is perceived and utilized by alert recipients...
Authors
James D. Goltz, David J. Wald, Sara K. McBride, Robert Michael deGroot, Jolie Breeden, Ann Bostrom
Improving the Development Pipelines for USGS Earthquake Hazards Program Real-Time and Scenario Products
The real-time and scenario products of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Earthquake Hazards Program, such as the ComCat catalog, Did You Feel It?, ShakeMap, ShakeCast, and PAGER, are highly visible and used by a wide variety of stakeholders. We propose two significant enhancements to the development pipelines for the Earthquake Hazards Program real-time and scenario products that have...
Authors
Brad T. Aagaard, David J. Wald, Eric M. Thompson, Mike Hearne, Lisa Sue Schleicher
Bayesian updating of seismic ground failure estimates via causal graphical models and satellite imagery
Earthquake-induced secondary ground failure hazards, such as liquefaction and landslides, result in catastrophic building and infrastructure damage as well as human fatalities. To facilitate emergency responses and mitigate losses, the U.S. Geological Survey provides a rapid hazard estimation system for earthquake-triggered landslides and liquefaction using geospatial susceptibility...
Authors
S. Xu, Joshua Dimasaka, David J. Wald, H. Noh
Near real-time updating of pager loss estimates
Initial alerts by PAGER (Prompt Assessment of Global Earthquakes for Response) within minutes following an earthquake include several uncertainties, mainly due to potential inaccuracies in location, depth, fault delineation, and shaking estimates. We enhance an updating framework by incorporating early reports of fatalities within the first 24 hours, or so, of an earthquake to update...
Authors
Davis T. Engler, Kishor S. Jaiswal, Hae Young Noh, David J. Wald
Comment on “Which earthquake accounts matter” by Susan E. Hough and Stacey S. Martin
In their analysis of the U.S. Geological Survey’s (USGS) “Did You Feel It?” (DYFI) data Hough and Martin (2021) claim, among other assertions, that the following:Socioeconomic and geopolitical factors can introduce biases in the USGS’ characterization of earthquakes and their effects, especially if online data collection systems are not designed to be broadly accessible;These biases can...
Authors
David J. Wald
Evaluation of intensity prediction equations (IPEs) for small-magnitude earthquakes
This study assesses existing intensity prediction equations (IPEs) for small unspecified magnitude (M ≤3.5) earthquakes at short hypocentral distances (Dh) and explores such earthquakes’ contribution to the felt shaking hazard. In particular, we consider IPEs by Atkinson and Wald (2007) and Atkinson et al. (2014), and evaluate their performance based on “Did You Feel It” (DYFI) reports...
Authors
Ganyu Teng, Jack W. Baker, David J. Wald
An efficient Bayesian framework for updating PAGER loss estimates
We introduce a Bayesian framework for incorporating time-varying noisy reported data on damage and loss information to update near real-time loss estimates/alerts for the U.S. Geological Survey’s Prompt Assessment of Global Earthquakes for Response (PAGER) system. Initial loss estimation by PAGER immediately following an earthquake includes several uncertainties. Historically, the PAGER...
Authors
Hae Young Noh, Kishor S. Jaiswal, Davis T. Engler, David J. Wald
The US Geological Survey ground failure product: Near-real-time estimates of earthquake-triggered landslides and liquefaction
Since late 2018, the US Geological Survey (USGS) ground failure (GF) earthquake product has provided publicly available spatial estimates of earthquake-triggered landslide and liquefaction hazards, along with the qualitative hazard and population exposure-based alerts for M > 6 earthquakes worldwide and in near real time (within ∼30 min). Earthquake losses are oftentimes greatly...
Authors
Kate E. Allstadt, Eric M. Thompson, Randall W. Jibson, David J. Wald, Mike Hearne, Edward J. Hunter, Jeremy Fee, Heather Schovanec, Daniel Slosky, Kirstie Lafon Haynie
Book review: Why do buildings collapse in earthquakes? Building for safety in seismic areas
No abstract available.
Authors
David J. Wald
ShakeMap operations, policies, and procedures
The US Geological Survey’s ShakeMap is used domestically and globally for post-earthquake emergency management and response, engineering analyses, financial instruments, and other decision-making activities. Recent developments in the insurance, reinsurance, and catastrophe bond sectors link payouts of potentially hundreds of millions of dollars to ShakeMap products. Similarly, building...
Authors
David J. Wald, Charles Worden, Eric M. Thompson, Mike Hearne
Amateur radio operators help fill earthquake donut holes
If you’ve ever seen tall antennas rising from everyday residences in your community and wondered what they are for, it could be that those homes belong to ham radio enthusiasts who enjoy communicating with each other over the airwaves. In addition to having fun with their radios and finding camaraderie, many ham radio operators are also prepared to help neighbors and authorities...
Authors
David J. Wald, Vince Quitoriano, Oliver Dully
Non-USGS Publications**
References in Google Scholar
**Disclaimer: The views expressed in Non-USGS publications are those of the author and do not represent the views of the USGS, Department of the Interior, or the U.S. Government.
Science and Products
Filter Total Items: 160
Integrated strategies for enhanced rapid earthquake shaking, ground failure, and impact estimation employing remotely sensed and ground truth constraints
Estimating earthquake impacts using physical or empirical models is challenging because the three components of loss estimation-shaking, exposure, and vulnerabilities-entail inherent uncertainties. Loss modeling in near-real-time adds additional uncertainties, yet expectations for actionable information with a reasonable level of confidence in the results are real. The modeling...
Authors
David J. Wald, Susu Xu, H. Noh, Joshua Dimasaka, Kishor S. Jaiswal, Kate E. Allstadt, Davis T. Engler
Development of a companion questionnaire for “Did You Feel It?”: Assessing response in earthquakes where an earthquake early warning may have been received
Earthquake early warning (EEW) systems are relatively new technologies having first emerged as regional systems in the 1990s. Japan was the first nation to develop and implement a nationwide system in October 2007, and in the United States, ShakeAlert® became available on the entire length of the US West Coast in May 2021. Assessing how EEW is perceived and utilized by alert recipients...
Authors
James D. Goltz, David J. Wald, Sara K. McBride, Robert Michael deGroot, Jolie Breeden, Ann Bostrom
Improving the Development Pipelines for USGS Earthquake Hazards Program Real-Time and Scenario Products
The real-time and scenario products of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Earthquake Hazards Program, such as the ComCat catalog, Did You Feel It?, ShakeMap, ShakeCast, and PAGER, are highly visible and used by a wide variety of stakeholders. We propose two significant enhancements to the development pipelines for the Earthquake Hazards Program real-time and scenario products that have...
Authors
Brad T. Aagaard, David J. Wald, Eric M. Thompson, Mike Hearne, Lisa Sue Schleicher
Bayesian updating of seismic ground failure estimates via causal graphical models and satellite imagery
Earthquake-induced secondary ground failure hazards, such as liquefaction and landslides, result in catastrophic building and infrastructure damage as well as human fatalities. To facilitate emergency responses and mitigate losses, the U.S. Geological Survey provides a rapid hazard estimation system for earthquake-triggered landslides and liquefaction using geospatial susceptibility...
Authors
S. Xu, Joshua Dimasaka, David J. Wald, H. Noh
Near real-time updating of pager loss estimates
Initial alerts by PAGER (Prompt Assessment of Global Earthquakes for Response) within minutes following an earthquake include several uncertainties, mainly due to potential inaccuracies in location, depth, fault delineation, and shaking estimates. We enhance an updating framework by incorporating early reports of fatalities within the first 24 hours, or so, of an earthquake to update...
Authors
Davis T. Engler, Kishor S. Jaiswal, Hae Young Noh, David J. Wald
Comment on “Which earthquake accounts matter” by Susan E. Hough and Stacey S. Martin
In their analysis of the U.S. Geological Survey’s (USGS) “Did You Feel It?” (DYFI) data Hough and Martin (2021) claim, among other assertions, that the following:Socioeconomic and geopolitical factors can introduce biases in the USGS’ characterization of earthquakes and their effects, especially if online data collection systems are not designed to be broadly accessible;These biases can...
Authors
David J. Wald
Evaluation of intensity prediction equations (IPEs) for small-magnitude earthquakes
This study assesses existing intensity prediction equations (IPEs) for small unspecified magnitude (M ≤3.5) earthquakes at short hypocentral distances (Dh) and explores such earthquakes’ contribution to the felt shaking hazard. In particular, we consider IPEs by Atkinson and Wald (2007) and Atkinson et al. (2014), and evaluate their performance based on “Did You Feel It” (DYFI) reports...
Authors
Ganyu Teng, Jack W. Baker, David J. Wald
An efficient Bayesian framework for updating PAGER loss estimates
We introduce a Bayesian framework for incorporating time-varying noisy reported data on damage and loss information to update near real-time loss estimates/alerts for the U.S. Geological Survey’s Prompt Assessment of Global Earthquakes for Response (PAGER) system. Initial loss estimation by PAGER immediately following an earthquake includes several uncertainties. Historically, the PAGER...
Authors
Hae Young Noh, Kishor S. Jaiswal, Davis T. Engler, David J. Wald
The US Geological Survey ground failure product: Near-real-time estimates of earthquake-triggered landslides and liquefaction
Since late 2018, the US Geological Survey (USGS) ground failure (GF) earthquake product has provided publicly available spatial estimates of earthquake-triggered landslide and liquefaction hazards, along with the qualitative hazard and population exposure-based alerts for M > 6 earthquakes worldwide and in near real time (within ∼30 min). Earthquake losses are oftentimes greatly...
Authors
Kate E. Allstadt, Eric M. Thompson, Randall W. Jibson, David J. Wald, Mike Hearne, Edward J. Hunter, Jeremy Fee, Heather Schovanec, Daniel Slosky, Kirstie Lafon Haynie
Book review: Why do buildings collapse in earthquakes? Building for safety in seismic areas
No abstract available.
Authors
David J. Wald
ShakeMap operations, policies, and procedures
The US Geological Survey’s ShakeMap is used domestically and globally for post-earthquake emergency management and response, engineering analyses, financial instruments, and other decision-making activities. Recent developments in the insurance, reinsurance, and catastrophe bond sectors link payouts of potentially hundreds of millions of dollars to ShakeMap products. Similarly, building...
Authors
David J. Wald, Charles Worden, Eric M. Thompson, Mike Hearne
Amateur radio operators help fill earthquake donut holes
If you’ve ever seen tall antennas rising from everyday residences in your community and wondered what they are for, it could be that those homes belong to ham radio enthusiasts who enjoy communicating with each other over the airwaves. In addition to having fun with their radios and finding camaraderie, many ham radio operators are also prepared to help neighbors and authorities...
Authors
David J. Wald, Vince Quitoriano, Oliver Dully
Non-USGS Publications**
References in Google Scholar
**Disclaimer: The views expressed in Non-USGS publications are those of the author and do not represent the views of the USGS, Department of the Interior, or the U.S. Government.