Ground Motion Modelling

Special Interest Groups

Special Interest Group

SIG2: Ground Motion Modeling

Shaking from earthquakes poses a hazard to both people and the built environment. Many factors determine how strong shaking will be in the Pacific Northwest during future earthquakes. The Ground Motion Modeling SIG seeks to advance our models of earthquake ground shaking to include state-of-the-art knowledge within field. This includes integrating information from CRESCENT’s cutting-edge research in the CVM, CFM, and DET groups, which all contribute to advancing our knowledge of the hazards posed by ground shaking. The SIG will also work closely with state and federal agencies, as well as community partners, to translate these advances into usable shaking estimates and seismic hazard models.


Shaking expected for a M9 earthquake, from “Ensemble ShakeMaps for magnitude 9 earthquakes on the Cascadia Subduction Zone” by Wirth et al. (2021).

Meet The Team

SIG2 Membership

Alex grant, US Geological Survey

alex grant
U.S. Geological Survey
agrant@usgs.gov

Valerie Sahakian, University of Oregon

Valerie Sahakian
Ground Motion Modeling SIG Lead
University of Oregon
vjs@uoregon.edu

Erin Wirth, US Geological Survey

Erin Wirth
U.S. Geological Survey
ewirth@usgs.gov

Skip to content