Plate Boundaries and Natural Hazards
Geophysical Monograph Series

The beginning of the new millennium has been particularly devastating in terms of natural disasters associated with tectonic plate boundaries, such as earthquakes in Sumatra, Chile, Japan, Tahiti, and Nepal; the Indian Ocean and the Pacific Ocean tsunamis; and volcanoes in Indonesia, Chile, Iceland that have produced large quantities of ash causing major disruption to aviation. In total, half a million people were killed by such natural disasters. These recurring events have increased our awareness of the destructive power of natural hazards and the major risks associated with them. While we have come a long way in the search for understanding such natural phenomena, and although our knowledge of Earth dynamics and plate tectonics has improved enormously, there are still fundamental uncertainties in our understanding of natural hazards. Increased understanding is crucial to improve our capacity for hazard prediction and mitigation.

Volume highlights include:

• Main concepts associated with tectonic plate boundaries
• Novel studies on boundary-related natural hazards
• Fundamental concepts that improve hazard prediction and mitigation

Plate Boundaries and Natural Hazards will be a valuable resource for scientists and students in the fields of geophysics, geochemistry, plate tectonics, natural hazards, and climate science. 

Contributors vii

Preface xi

1 Introduction to Plate Boundaries and Natural Hazards
João C Duarte and Wouter P Schellart 1

Part I Reviews 11

2 Rifts and Rifted Margins: A Review of Geodynamic Processes and Natural Hazards
Sascha Brune 13

3 Origin, Evolution, Seismicity, and Models of Oceanic and Continental Transform Boundaries
Taras V Gerya 39

4 An Introduction to Convergent Margins and Their Natural Hazards
Robert J Stern, David W Scholl, and Gerard Fryer 77

Part II Earthquakes and Related Natural Hazards 99

5 Great Subduction Zone Earthquakes: Advances in Our Understanding a Decade after Sumatra, 2004
Marc]André Gutscher 101

6 Promise and Paradox: Why Improved Knowledge of Plate Tectonics Has Not Yielded Correspondingly Better Earthquake Hazard Maps
Seth Stein, Mian Liu, Bruce D Spencer, and Edward M Brooks 123

7 Joint Inversion of High]Rate GPS and Teleseismic Observations for Rupture Process of the 23 June 2014 (Mw 79) Rat Islands Archipelago, Alaska, Intermediate Depth Earthquake
Lingling Ye, Thorne Lay, Hiroo Kanamori, Jeffrey T Freymueller, and Luis Rivera 149

8 Large Earthquakes and Structural Heterogeneity in Eastern Tibetan Plateau
Jianshe Lei and Dapeng Zhao 167

9 Seismic Potential of Thrust]Wrench Tectonic Interference between Major Active Faults Offshore SW Iberia: A New Explanation for the 1755 Great Lisbon Earthquake?
Filipe M Rosas, João C Duarte, Wouter P Schellart, Ricardo Tomás, and Pedro Terrinha 193

10 On the Sedimentological and Historical Evidences of Seismic]Triggered Tsunamis on the Algarve Coast of Portugal
César Andrade, Maria C Freitas, Maria A Oliveira, and Pedro J M Costa 219

Part III Volcanoes and Related Natural Hazards 239

11 Growth, Demise, and Recent Eruption History of the Eastern Cobb]Eickelberg Seamounts at the Intersection with the Juan De Fuca Ridge
Robert P Dziak and Susan G Merle 241

12 The Devastating Impact of the 2010 Eruption of Merapi Volcano, Indonesia
Susanna F Jenkins, Jean]Christophe Komorowski, Peter J Baxter, Sylvain J Charbonnier, Noer Cholik, and Surono 259

13 The Tsunami Effects of a Collapse of a Volcanic Island on a Semienclosed Basin: The Pico]São Jorge Channel in the Azores Archipelago
Rachid Omira, Rui Quartau, Inês Ramalho, Maria Ana Baptista, and Neil C Mitchell 271

14 Remote Sensing of Volcanic Eruptions: From Aviation Hazards to Global Cooling
Andrew T Prata 289

Index 323

Dr. João C. Duarte, Research Fellow at the School of Earth, Atmosphere and Environment, Monash University, Melbourne, Australia.

Dr. Wouter P. Schellart, Associate Professor at the School of Earth, Atmosphere and Environment, Monash University, Melbourne, Australia.