How are the SCIGN data used?

Scientists utilize the SCIGN data to learn more about what is happening under the Earth's surface. They can use the data to model what is going on deep in the crust and learn more about faults and fault mechanics. These data are particularly useful for studies of blind faults, which have no expression at the surface of the Earth.

The SCIGN data are being used currently to model the effects of the Northridge earthquake, which occurred on a blind thrust fault. The data have revealed that following the earthquake, the fault that caused the event continued to slip for several years. This has given scientists new insights into how faults release stress both during, immediately following, and in between earthquakes.

The data from SCIGN are also being used to model the fault systems that lie directly beneath the Los Angeles Basin. Scientists are using the data to try and account for the ongoing deformation that the network is recording and to try and figure out which faults are responsible for the largest slip rates. This will help to determine which faults have an increased seismic hazard potential since faults that slip faster may be locations of future earthquakes.

Eventually, SCIGN data will also be used to try and learn more about the mantle underneath Southern California and how it is interacting with the crust. This will also help scientists to learn about what sort of mechanisms control faults in the Earth's crust.

What is SCIGN? Who runs it? Who has access? What happens to SCIGN data? How are the SCIGN data used? More about SCIGN