Geofizički seminar 28.5.2026. u 13:00 h

Sažetak: The past three decades have witnessed a fundamental transformation in seismic observational infrastructure — from sparse regional and continental networks to dense, targeted arrays capable of resolving fine-scale structure and source processes. This talk traces that evolution through direct experience with some of its defining experiments.

We begin with USArray, the Transportable Array component of EarthScope, which systematically imaged the North American continent at unprecedented resolution and established new standards for large-scale network operations, data quality, and open data access. We then examine what continental-scale observations reveal about their own limitations — the structural and source complexities that sparse networks cannot resolve — and how this motivated a new generation of dense deployments.

The San Jacinto Fault Zone in southern California serves as the central case study. Beginning with the long-running Anza broadband network and progressing through the FaultScan nodal array experiment, we show how increasing network density transforms our understanding of fault zone structure, seismicity patterns, and ground motion variability. These experiments also exposed practical and scientific requirements that point toward a new observational paradigm.

We close with the Rupture and Fault Zone Observatory (RAFO) concept — a vision for permanent dense instrumentation along active fault systems that integrates broadband, nodal, and emerging sensing technologies.