The following open position may be of interest for the tectonics community:
The Institut de Physique du Globe de Paris has an opening for a post-doctoral position to
carry out research in tectonics and structural geology. The project (PI: Martine Simoes) is
funded by the Agence Nationale de la Recherche (ANR) to assess active deformation and
seismic hazards in slowly deforming orogens, by quantifying deformation over various timescales,
from long-term geological deformation down in time to short-term processes at the scale
of the seismic cycle. The Western Kunlun mountain range (China) will be considered as a case
example.
These are the latest papers on paleoseismology, active tectonics and tsunami, including a special issue on the Alpine Fault in New Zealand. Enjoy! more
The Tien Shan takes up about 20 mm/yr of N-S shortening as a result of the India-Eurasia convergence. Recent paleoseismological studies have shown that the shortening is accommodated by a large number of faults, whose slip rates are relatively low. Although the historical earthquake catalogues only reach back a few hundred years, we know that the Tien Shan has seen some of the strongest intracontinetal quakes world-wide with magnitudes exceeding M8. Paleoseismological studies have revealed a large number of surface-rupturing earthquakes, too. But the question is: Do all these known faults rupture in strong earthquakes? In a recent paper, my colleagues and I argue that there is at least one major fault in the Northern Tien Shan that is creeping (Mackenzie et al., 2018). more
Please save the date for the 10th PATA Days in Israel: 19-27 September, 2019.
The pre-conference field trip from 19-22 September will lead to the Dead Sea and to Jerusalem, and we will see seismites, active faults, archaeoseismology, sinkholes, lake levels and tectonics. The main conference will be held from 22-27 September in Caesarea and the Sea of Galilee, including presentations, posters and half-day field trips focused on tsunamis, archaeoseismology and active faults!
Opening and closing date: 08/10/2018 to 09/10/2018 (I am not sure if that means 10 August to 10 September or 8-9 October…)
Duties:
–Perform field-based paleoseismic research to characterize the chronology of past earthquakes or slip rates on faults in the greater San Andreas fault system in northern California.
–Perform geological research to characterize crustal deformation in northern California and elsewhere. more
This time we have an impressive variety of earthquake study sites: Turkey, China, USA, Tadjik Basin, Italy, Japan, Sumatra, Himalayas, Spain, Mexico, Balkans, Mars, laboratory. Who could possibly ask for more? Plus some interesting work on fault physics. Check out the latest papers on earthquakes, active tectonics, and paleoseismicity:
On Thursday 28th June, I had the opportunity, together with over 40 students and Early Career Researchers, to attend the full-day summer school organized during the 9th PATA Days Congress in Possidi, Greece.
Gotha speakers gave short lectures on a variety of topics; well, it’s quite strange realizing that behind a book cover or a long list of papers you’ve read there’s a real person with a face, 2 hands and 2 eyes… but that’s what happened to me.
Location, location, location
As geoscientists, we all know the importance of a proper location… the Possidi Holiday Resort is just 20 m from the beach! Even the storm Hera did not prevent us to go for a swim.
The Possidi Beach. Photo by Sofia Christoforidou.
The summer school
The first lecturer was Klaus Reicherter, dealing with tsunamis in the Mediterranean and in Greece and highlighting the inherently multidisciplinary nature of such a research.
Tom Rockwell focused on strike-slip fault with worldwide examples – S. Andreas, North Anatolian, Great Sumatra and Dead Sea Faults – and field-based results.
Jim McCalpin spoke about the use of paleoseismology in seismic hazard assessment, giving us a bucket of real-life examples, experiences, good (and less good) practices. And I learned that when building a logic tree, a 5% probability is not denied to (almost) everybody.
Shmulik Marco showed on- and off-fault archaeoseismological evidences and soft-sediment deformations along the Dead Sea Fault. Well, it was just a small tasting on how astonishing is going to be the next PATA meeting in Israel in 2019. Plus (in my opinion) the best tip of the day: keep good relations with archaeologists, you never know what they will discover under the dirt.
Then, Spyros Pavlides dealt with active faulting in multi-fractured seismic areas, and specifically the Aegean region. Just in case you are wondering if there’s something simple there, ehm… no, you should consider multiple tectonic phases, inherited structures, the presence of normal faulting, subduction zones and volcanic activity all together.
We definitely changed perspective with Manuel Sintubin, speaking about earthquake risk communication and the need to move from a risk message model toward a risk dialogue model; this is a super-important topic not always addressed in the proper way, with possible huge consequences.
Ioannis Papanikolaou spoke about the seismic landscape, extraction of slip rates and fault specific SHA with tens of examples from Greece and Italy and useful tips on advantages and disadvantages of each methodological approach.
Finally, Georgios Syrides gave a lecture on sea level change indicators. Well, I’m very ignorant on this because simply it’s not my bag, so I learned lots of things (bonus: super-cool photos!).
Here’s the PATA team! (yes, I’m quite mad with football and the World Cup was ongoing…)
“He who knows only his own side of the case knows little of that” – John Stuart Mill, On Liberty, 1859
I saw top scientists jump on their seats when other top scientists called “small” a M 6 or “moderate” a M > 7 earthquake. Or when a trench revealing 5 events was called a “short record”. We all have different perspectives, opinions and experiences. And with “we” I mean all of us, from top scientists down to undergraduate students. I think it’s a richness and we should take care of it.
Final remarks: thanks!
The success of the summer school and the whole 9th PATA Days meeting would not have been possible without the contribution and efforts of the Thessaloniki University staff. A big thank to all of you and see you in the next PATA meeting!
The conference “30 years after the Spitak Earthquake: Experience and Perspectives” will be held in Armenia from 3-7 December, 2018. Abstract deadline is 15 September. The first circular has just been released, download the PDF here. The abstract template in MS Word format is available here.
Just click the "Unsubscribe" link which you find in every newsletter you get and your email adress will be removed from the subscribers list in seconds.
Sharing Options