Find the Tectonic Fault
- By Peter Tyson
- Posted 06.01.09
- NOVA scienceNOW
In 2008, geophysicist Beatrice Magnani and her team discovered a previously unknown fault deep beneath Memphis, Tennessee, in an area home to millions of people. The fault could still be active and, if so, could potentially release a major earthquake. In this interactive, see if you can find the new fault within a so-called "seismic section," a picture of the subsurface created with sound.
Launch Interactive
In this seismic image, see if you can locate an unsettling new fault just discovered beneath the Mississippi River.
Credits
Images
- (Beatrice Magnani, tugboat)
- Courtesy Beatrice Magnani
- (map)
- © WGBH Educational Foundation
- (1812 earthquake)
- © Bettmann/CORBIS
Related Links
-
Earthquakes in the Midwest
Three massive earthquakes struck the American Midwest in 1811-12. Could it happen again?
-
Midwest Earthquakes: Expert Q&A
Geophysicist Beatrice Magnani answers questions about the New Madrid Seismic Zone and its deadly potential.
-
Mt St Helens: Back From the Dead
Thirty years after the massive eruption, could it happen again?
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