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OSU geology and geophysics Professor Chris Goldfinger, quoted in The New Yorker this week on Cascadia earthquakes and tsunamis, removes a seafloor core sample from storage in his lab. Samples contain deposits that enabled Goldfinger and fellow researchers to determine how much of the Cascadia subduction-zone fault has ruptured, how often and how drastically.
(Oregon State University)
Chris Goldfinger, the main Cascadia earthquake/tsunami expert quoted by The New Yorker this week, will take your questions in a live chat beginning at 1 p.m. Friday on OregonLive.com.
Goldfinger is an expert on the history and mechanics of the Cascadia subduction zone, the offshore fault that extends from northern California to Vancouver Island. He and his colleagues discovered that the fault has generated numerous powerful earthquakes, and that it will produce magnitude-9 quakes in the future that will propel massive, deadly tsunamis to the Northwest coast.
Chris Goldfinger checks data aboard a vessel while researching earthquakes. OSU maintains one of the nation's largest archives of sediment cores to reconstruct past quake and climate scenarios.
Goldfinger will participate from Zurich, where he's presenting research findings at a scientific conference.In Oregon, Goldfinger is opposing OSU's plans to build a $50 million science center in Newport's tsunami indundation zone, contending that no amount of engineering can guarantee safety for as many as 350 people in the structure.
Moderating the chat will be reporter Richard Read, a senior writer for The Oregonian/OregonLive, who covered the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami in Indonesia and Sri Lanka and the 2011 Japan tsunami, returning to Japan a year later to report on recovery efforts.
You can begin asking questions now, in the comments section of this post. Or submit questions via Twitter, by including the @oregonian handle and #quakeQandA, or at The Oregonian's Facebook page. Or email rread@oregonian.com.
-- Richard Read
503-294-5135, rread@oregonian.com
Follow on Twitter: @ReadOregonian