The top of the EarthScope Drill Rig is about 37 m high

Source: Robert de Groot, SCEC

My colleagues and I have the great joy of sharing information about earthquakes every day. Wearing shirts with the SCEC logo is often all it takes to start a conversation about earthquakes on the Los Angeles Metro Red Line or on a long plane journey. We carry copies of Putting Down Roots in Earthquake Country with us always ready to share the great triad: Care, Do, and, Know. I suspect many members of the SCEC community have had similar experiences.

There is nothing like experiencing an earthquake and being close to the scientific dialogue as the story unfolds. Also, observing the interaction between the investigators and the media offers its own set interesting stories.

For years I had heard about the "Parkfield Experiment" in textbooks, lectures, and films. On September 28th I experienced my first earthquake on the San Andreas fault at Parkfield. As an added bonus, I was standing on the platform of the drill rig (9.5 meters high) being used for the EarthScope San Andreas Fault Observatory at Depth (SAFOD) project.

Film Crew on EarthScope SAFOD Drill Rig

Source: Robert de Groot, SCEC

I was assisting a film crew that was filming the first segment of Material World, a ten-part television series sponsored by The Center for the Science and Engineering of Materials (CSEM), an NSF center based at Caltech. We had just completed a morning interview with Dr. Stephen Hickman, a scientist with the USGS. Hickman told us that the SAFOD team was finishing up work for the season and they were engaged in a series of procedures preparing for the collection of cores.

At 10:15 am PDT it happened. The waves from a magnitude 6.0 earthquake with a focus depth of 7.9 km began to shake the rig. The rig shook slightly during normal operations but this was different. At first I thought something was wrong with the rig but I noticed trees shaking and a small plume of dust rising from the hills in the east of the rig (the San Andreas Fault is about 2 km east of the drill rig). We learned later that the epicenter of the earthquake was 24 km south of the drill site.

The film crew wasn't able to film the event because it was very difficult to stand during the shaking. Afterwards we went back to the science trailer and captured the dialogue of scientists discussing a variety of issues including the possibility that this could have been the Parkfield event that had been expected since the late 1980s.

On Location with Material World Film Crew

Source: Robert de Groot, SCEC

I accompanied Steve Hickman and a reporter from Discover Magazine to the USGS office in Parkfield. During the trip Parkfield, Hickman commented that this "will probably be the most well-recorded earthquake in history." He went on to describe the history of earthquakes in the region.

When we arrived at the office USGS scientist Andy Snyder was swamped with phone calls. I walked over to the Parkfield Café to get a drink and it dawned on me that I needed to buy one of their famous t-shirts that proclaims: "Parkfield Café - Earthquake Capitol of the World – Be Here When it Happens." I couldn't think of a more appropriate time to buy a shirt.

It became apparent immediately that the news crews would not be arriving until much later so we headed back to the drill site for more filming. During a free moment I proudly submitted my contribution to the "Did You Feel It?" website for the earthquake. It took a bit of explaining about where I was during the earthquake.

Steve Hickman being interviewed by news crews next to the Parkfield Café

Source: Robert de Groot, SCEC

Later in the day we went back to town to find news crews from all over the state. There we joined Mark Zoback and Naomi Boness, both from Stanford who were already engaged in interviews. The excitement of what would be learned from this earthquake was palpable during the media interviews. When asked about the possible relationship between the drilling project and the earthquake Zoback commented, "There is no chance that the drilling project set off the earthquake. The quake started 24 km from the drill site and drilling had stopped for the season 10 days ago." We also learned about damage that had been reported in Monterey Country and elsewhere in the state.

Painted lines on Highway 46 at Cholame Creek illustrate the offset of the San Andreas Fault as a result of the Magnitude 6 earthquake.

Source: Mark Zoback, Stanford Univerisity

Upon returning to my hotel room in Paso Robles late that evening I found a note from the hotel staff informing us that an earthquake had occurred and that they were concerned about our safety. The next morning before leaving my hotel for the airport, I placed a copy of Putting Down Roots in Earthquake Country in the drawer of my nightstand hoping that the next person that occupied the room would learn a bit more about Care, Do, Know while spending time in earthquake country.