“Right Coast” Seismicity and the Lamont Cooperative Seismic Network

ABSTRACT

Most people probably think of the West Coast (or “Left Coast”) of North America when they think of earthquakes.  But the Appalachian, Piedmont and Coastal Plain regions of the East (“Right”) Coast are more seismically active than one might think.  Most Eastern earthquakes are relatively small, but, historically, some have had magnitudes of 6 or greater.  An earthquake of magnitude 4.6 occurred in Berks County, Pennsylvania, in January, 1994, causing minor damage.  East Coast earthquakes are monitored principally by four networks of seismograph stations, linked by the Internet.  These are the Polaris Network operated by the Canadian Geological Survey, the New England network (Boston College), the Southeast Network (Virginia Tech) and the Lamont Cooperative Seismic Network (LCSN), directed by the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory of Columbia University.  The LCSN consists of 40 stations located in 7 states, from Vermont to Delaware, and includes Millersville University’s station.  On average, the LCSN detects and locates about 8 earthquakes every month.