![](https://cascadiaquakes.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/science_header.jpg)
Science
Understanding earthquakes and their hazards
Mission Statement
CRESCENT Science
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Subduction zones host the largest earthquakes on the planet. Their cascading consequences — strong shaking, tsunamis, landslides, liquefaction, fire — make them some of the most devastating natural hazards. As scientists, we strive to understand the important physical processes that drive convergent plate boundaries, like the Cascadia Subduction Zone. While these lines of inquiry have yielded some of the most important advances in solid Earth geosciences to date, subduction zones are complicated physical systems and understanding their dynamics, past, and future behavior is challenging. CRESCENT’s science program focuses broadly on developing a better understanding of the Cascadia Subduction Zone through focused collaborations between teams of scientists.
![](https://cascadiaquakes.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/IMG-6905-1-1024x768.jpg)
Major Activity
Working Groups
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CRESCENT’s working groups are teams of scientists, engineers, and educators tasked with developing products that are required to close the gap between science and hazard. Some working groups will focus on synthesis and integration of existing data into community models that can be used in both basic and applied science applications. Other working groups will develop tools needed to advance our understanding of subduction zone processes in Cascadia. Each group meets regularly to ensure timely development of their tools and organizes training, and topical workshops. Working groups also collaborate to ensure consistency between their products.
![](https://cascadiaquakes.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/Alice-sumatra_wavefield-edited.png)
DET
Dynamic Rupture, Earthquake Cycle, and Tsunamis
![](https://cascadiaquakes.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/51149817486_6c8b09c31a_3k-300x300.jpg)
CFM
Community Fault
Model
![Scientists work with seizmic equipment](https://cascadiaquakes.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/CPAL-300x300.jpg)
CPAL
Cascadia Paleoseismology
![](https://cascadiaquakes.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/csss-edited-300x300.jpg)
C3S
Coupling, Seismicity, and Slow Slip
![](https://cascadiaquakes.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/cvm_imagery_stephensonModel-300x300.jpg)
CVM
Community
Velocity Model
Major Activity
Special Interest Groups
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CRESCENTs special interest groups will focus on critical and frontier science that will help steer center activities towards its future geohazards goals. Special interest groups represent areas of interest for CRESCENT that could, with additional support and/or development, become designated working groups.
Major Activity
Biennial Meetings
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Three-day meetings devoted to disseminating and sharing CRESCENT-related science with a combination of keynote talks, short-format talks, poster sessions, and networking opportunities. These meetings will also feature several networking and career-building events for early-career attendees.
![Biennial meeting](https://cascadiaquakes.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/biennial_meetings-1024x354.jpg)
Major Activity
Topical Workshops
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Ten topical workshops create opportunities for a broad variety of scientists, early career researchers, and graduate students to discuss CRESCENT goals and science challenges. ToWs represent a key forum for the working groups to interact with the community on topics such as data sources, new findings and observations, synthesis methodologies, product dissemination best practices, and other activities. Topical workshops will be organized around talks, free-form discussion, and breakouts and seek the broadest possible representation of academic participants, federal and state agency scientists, and stakeholders. The inclusion of students, postdocs, and early career scientists aligns with CRESCENT’s workforce development goals. Moreover, topical workshops offer a mechanism for identifying priorities for the seed grant program.
![](https://cascadiaquakes.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/image-1.jpeg)
Special Programs
Seed Grants
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While the activities of the working groups ensure that CRESCENT delivers substantial new understanding of earthquake processes generally and subduction zone behavior more specifically, the center’s scientific program is ambitious and cannot be realized by CRESCENT researchers alone. CRESCENT’s seed grant program has the dual goal of broadening community participation and increasing the breadth of scientific investigations related to the center’s scientific goals. The center will invite the community to participate in CRESCENT through a proposal call each Fall, to address key scientific challenges identified by the Science Planning committee.
Who we are
CRESCENT Participants
![](https://cascadiaquakes.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/line_stroke_2-2.png)
![NSF](http://cascadiaquakes.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/logo_nsf.jpeg)
![Oregon State University](https://cascadiaquakes.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/logo_osu-300x300.png)
![University of Oregon](http://cascadiaquakes.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/logo_oregon.png)
![USGS](http://cascadiaquakes.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/logo_usgs-1024x410.png)
![](https://cascadiaquakes.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/logo_uncw.png)
![Central Washington University](http://cascadiaquakes.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/logo_cwu.jpg)
![Virginia Tech](https://cascadiaquakes.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/image-3.png)
![Portland State University](https://cascadiaquakes.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/logo_psu-e1694053688394-300x300.png)
![Purdue University](http://cascadiaquakes.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/logo_purdue.png)
![Cal Poly Humboldt](https://cascadiaquakes.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/logo_cph-300x300.png)
![Western Washington University](http://cascadiaquakes.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/logo_wwu.png)
![University of California San Diego](http://cascadiaquakes.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/logo_ucsd-1024x1024.png)
![Washington State University](http://cascadiaquakes.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/logo_wsu.png)
![University of Washington](http://cascadiaquakes.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/UW.jpg)
![SC](http://cascadiaquakes.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/logo_sc.jpeg)
![Stanford University](https://cascadiaquakes.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/logo_stanford-200x300.png)
Cyberinfrastructure
CRESCENT Cloud
![](https://cascadiaquakes.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/line_stroke_2-2.png)
CRESCENT cloud is a JupyterHub built for the CRESCENT community to realize its scientific goals. The hub is maintained and supported through partnerships with the International Interactive Computing Collaboration (2i2c) and the Earthscope Consortium.
![](https://cascadiaquakes.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/CRESCENT-Cloud-Logo.png)
Connect with us
News, Events and Announcements
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5/17/2024: Oregon Delegation USGS Funding Request
5/13-14/2024: Community Velocity Model Topical Workshop
Community Velocity Model Topical Workshop May 13-14, 2024, 8:00 am – 12:00 pm PST – online Meeting Goals An online…
10/18/2023: Web Site Launch!
Welcome! Welcome to our newly designed web site! Explanations of CRESCENT’s mission, the organizational structure, and planned community activities can…
Meet The Team
Science Planning Committee
![](https://cascadiaquakes.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/line_stroke_2-2.png)
The Science Planning Committee oversees and facilitates CRESCENT’s ambitious scientific goals. It supports and manages the five center working groups, four special interest groups, cyberinfrastructure, and topical workshops.
![Eric Dunham, Stanford University](https://cascadiaquakes.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/eric_dunham_500-2.png)
Eric Dunham
Stanford University
edunham@stanford.edu
![Tina Dura, Virginia Tech](https://cascadiaquakes.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/dura_tina_500-2.png)
Tina Dura
Virginia Tech
tinadura@vt.edu
![Amanda Thomas, University of Oregon](https://cascadiaquakes.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/thomas_amanda_500-3.png)
Amanda Thomas
Science Planning Lead
University of Oregon
amthomas@uoregon.edu
![Pieter-Ewald Share, Oregon State University](https://cascadiaquakes.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/share_pieter_500.png)
Pieter-Ewald Share
Oregon State University
pieter.share@oregonstate.edu
![Ashley Streig, Portland State University](https://cascadiaquakes.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/streig_ashley_500-1.png)
Ashley Streig
Portland State University
streig@pdx.edu
![Joan Gomberg, USGS](https://cascadiaquakes.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/gomberg_joan_500.png)
Joan Gomberg
United States Geological Survey
gomberg@usgs.gov
![](https://cascadiaquakes.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/KScharer-scaled-e1709248478455-816x1024.jpg)
Kate Scharer
United States Geological Survey
kscharer@usgs.gov
![Brendan Crowell, University of Washington](https://cascadiaquakes.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/crowell_brendan_500-1.png)
Brendan Crowell
University of Washington
crowellb@uw.edu
![](https://cascadiaquakes.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/PAUL_SEGALL_0777_W_-e1709249084900.jpeg)
Paul Segall
Stanford University
segall@stanford.edu