Geologists have discovered that two mortal faults beneath San Francisco — the Hayward and Rodgers Creek defect — may be linked . Should one slip , it could set off the other demerit to crack up as well , causing an seism even larger than the one that hit back in 1989 .
geologist are very intimate with the Hayward Fault and its potential to unleash desolation along the populated subdivisions just east of San Francisco , buta raw paperpublished in Science Advances by research worker from the US Geological Survey render that a less - appreciated neighbor to the compass north , the Rodgers Creek Fault , may be connected . The discovery of a “ missing link ” between the two faults could exchange the way metropolis official plan for the next large quake in the Bay area .
scientist are quite certain that the next major seism to strike the part will probably result from a break in either the the Hayward or Rodgers Creek faults , but as the new inquiry from USGS geologist Janet Watt and colleagues show , these fault , which now appear to be interlink , could rupture simultaneously . If that were to find , it would bring forth a magnitude 7.4 quake along their combined 118 miles ( 190 kilometre ) .
A quake of this enduringness would cause wide harm and loss of life . And at a order of magnitude 7.4 , such a quake would be five times stronger than the 6.9 Loma Prieta quake in 1989 , which led to 63 death and nearly $ 10 billion in damages .
Previous work suggested that the two fault were separated by a two - geographical mile wide-eyed buffer under the bay . The Hayward Fault stretches for 62 miles ( 100 km ) from San Jose to San Pablo Bay , passing through Berkeley and Oakland , while the Rodgers Creek Fault prevail 56 miles ( 90 kilometre ) north of the bay through the warmheartedness of northerly California .
Watt ’s team used high - resolution subsurface image to figure the Hayward fault as it play under San Pablo Bay . To their surprise , they reveal a previously undetected strand of the defect that flex toward and connects with the Rodgers Creek defect . Using computer models , the researchers found that the stress patterns gibe in perfectly with visual observations of fault deformation and seismal activity in the domain .
Because they ’re interlink , these two faults essentially act as one , making it considerably easy for an earthquake rupture at either the northern or southern portion of the two faults to continue straight on through .
[ Science Advances ]
EarthquakesGeologySan FranciscoScience
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