L.A. Could See Damaging "Supershear" Earthquake, Scientists Warn

Supershear earthquakes happen when a rupture travels along fault lines faster than seismic shear waves, unleashing more intense shaking over wider areas. Earth scientists at USC Dornsife and the Statewide California Earthquake Center, utilizing advances in observations and computing, found this phenomenon is happening more frequently than once thought. Since 1999, more than a third of magnitude 7.0+ earthquakes have shown supershear features.

The USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences is the academic core of the University of Southern California, located in the heart of Los Angeles. Learn more: https://dornsife.usc.edu/