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News, analysis, data and videos covering U.S. ports along the East Coast, West Coast and Gulf Coast. From the latest news about port congestion, port strikes in L.A. or elsewhere, the JOC covers not just the details of the news, but the impact of current events on shippers, logistics providers, carriers, port terminal operators and other stakeholders in the sector.

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https://www.sacbee.com/news/california/article241768586.html

‘Heard it coming like a train’: Small town near Palm Springs sees 12 earthquakes

BY MARK PRICE

APRIL 04, 2020 07:23 AM, UPDATED APRIL 04, 2020 02:13 PM

The small town of Anza near Palm Springs, California, shook for hours Friday evening into Saturday morning, after it was hit by a 4.9 earthquake followed by 11 aftershocks over a five-hour period, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.

Data shows the first quake hit at 6:53 p.m. and reports posted to the USGS show people felt it as far as 100 miles away from the epicenter, including multiple reports in Los Angeles. Anza, with a population of about 3,000, is about 43 miles south of Palm Springs.

Aftershocks began within one minute and continued until just before 5 a.m. Saturday on the west coast. They ranged from 2.6 to 3.7, the USGS data shows.

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https://gcn.com/articles/2020/04/02/fiber-optic-cables-earthquake-detection.aspx APR 02, 2020

Fiber-optic internet cables could monitor earthquakes

A study provides new evidence that the same optical fibers that deliver high-speed internet and HD video to our homes could one day double as earthquake monitors.

“Fiber-optic cables are the backbone of modern telecommunications, and we have demonstrated that we can turn existing networks into extensive seismic arrays to assess ground motions during earthquakes,” says first author Zack Spica, an assistant professor in the earth and environmental sciences department at the University of Michigan.

Underground earthquake sensor system

Researchers conducted the study using a prototype array at Stanford University, where Spica was a postdoctoral fellow for several years.

“This is the first time that fiber-optic seismology has been used to derive a standard measure of subsurface properties that is used by earthquake engineers to anticipate the severity of shaking,” says coauthor Greg Beroza, professor in Stanford University’s School of Earth, Energy & Environmental Sciences.

To transform a fiber-optic cable into a seismic sensor, the researchers connect an instrument called a laser interrogator to one end of the cable. It shoots pulses of laser light down the fiber. The light bounces back when it encounters impurities along the fiber, creating a “backscatter signal” that is analyzed by a device called an interferometer.

Changes in the backscatter signal can reveal how the fiber stretches or compresses in response to passing disturbances, including seismic waves from earthquakes. The technique is called distributed acoustic sensing, or DAS, and has been used for years to monitor the health of pipelines and wells in the oil and gas industry.

The study extends previous work with the three-mile Stanford test loop by producing high-resolution maps of the shallow subsurface, which scientists can use to see which areas will undergo the strongest shaking in future earthquakes, Beroza says.