Welcome to the Washington University seismology group website. The seismology group, directed by Doug Wiens, uses seismology to better understand earthquakes, plate tectonics and other natural phenomena in subduction zones and the Antarctic continent. The processes we are studying include:
– Transport of water deep into the earth at subduction zones
– The faulting mechanisms of deep earthquakes (events deeper than 70 km)
– Earthquakes and icequakes in Antarctica, and their relationship to geological and glacial processes.
– The structure of Antarctica and its influence on ice sheet dynamics in a warming world
Almost all of our work incorporates student research, and often involves data collection in remote locations using autonomous seismographs deployed on land, or on the sea floor.