Apr 17 2010
University of Oklahoma’s (UO) ConocoPhillips School of Geology and Geophysics professor Randy Keller has headed a U.S. geophysicists team that collaborated with Chinese geophysicists to complete two large-sized seismic projects during recent months. These projects will enable the understanding of the reason for intraplate type of dangerous earthquakes. This initiative complements the efforts of Keller's colleagues from the Oklahoma Geological Survey project, which is analyzing the intraplate region surrounding Oklahoma.
The world’s deadliest earthquake that caused 830,000 casualties occurred in China took place in a region that was far away from the tectonic plate boundary. These researchers are focusing on understanding the nature of intraplate earthquakes that occur at a considerable distance away from the boundary of the tectonic plate. This initiative aims to reduce the loss of property and life in Oklahoma and China.
The team had installed 500 seismic recorders along the Mongolia to Beijing profile during the initial Chinese experiment. The Chinese Academy of Geological Sciences and the OU researchers are collaborating to generate an image that depicts an image related to the Earth’s velocity at about 40 miles depth below the earth surface. This initiative formed part of the five, comprehensive, eight-component geophysical and geological analysis of the lithosphere that pertains to the Earth surface’s outer part.
For the second experiment, the Chinese Universities, the Chinese Earthquake Administration, Keller and his team collaborated for the deployment of a range of seismographs that covered the Tangshan city and its surroundings. This city that was destroyed during 1976 is located on a fault. The aim of this project is to find out new boundaries and ascertain hazards due to earthquakes base on new data received. This team will utilize the data collected to generate an image of the area’s structure up to 20 miles depth.
Keller and the team members initially designed the instruments for use as seismic recorders during the project as part of several research grants. The OU and the University of Missouri have received some funding from the National Science Foundation in the form of a $2M grant for the Keller’s team. However, most of the experimental expenses in China were funded by the Chinese Government. On their part, the OU and the Chinese researchers are continuing their collaboration through a group of Chinese graduate students and scientists to process, model, and interpret data gathered for the two experiments.