Fresh details about Silver Creek Fault in downtown San Jose, Calif.

Characterizing the Subsurface
Poster: Location: Serra I, Friday, April 10, 2009, 8:30 a.m. Active-source seismology is the chief investigative tool for imaging the Earth's crust. This paper focuses on the use of active-source seismic studies to image faults, basin geometry, groundwater, geologic hazards and the local and regional tectonic setting.

New details emerge about the Silver Creek Fault in downtown San Jose, California: The Silver Creek fault has been mapped in the hills south of San Jose, from east of Morgan Hill to the alluvial-covered parts of the Santa Clara Valley, where it is presumed to extend farther northwestward beneath downtown San Jose. To more precisely locate the Silver Creek fault within the city of San Jose, Rufus Catchings, et al., acquired seismic profiles across the fault zone in 1999 and in 2007. Because the fault zone extends beneath downtown San Jose, the fault may pose a significant seismic hazard to the region.

Source: Seismological Society of America