Project 21: Deep Hole Seismic Observatory Project
PROJECT MANAGER
Steve Hampson, Assistant Director, Kentucky Research Consortium for Energy and Environment, University of Kentucky
PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATORS
Dr. Edward W. Woolery, Assistant Professor, Department of Geological Sciences
University of Kentucky
Dr. Zhenming Wang, Seismologist and Section Head (Geological Hazards)
Kentucky Geological Survey, University of Kentucky
BACKGROUND AND SCOPE
This project involved the construction and instrumentation of a two thousand foot deep seismic observatory in Fulton County, Kentucky. A partnership of federal agencies and agencies at the University of Kentucky has worked cooperatively to make the project possible. The project is being overseen by Edward W. Woolery of UK’s Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences and Zhenming Wang of the Kentucky Geological Survey (KGS).
When the four-inch (inside diameter) wide, steel-encased borehole is completed and equipped with instruments, it will serve as a permanent observatory for earthquake studies as well as research for earthquake-resistant construction in the central U.S. The observatory will capture an abundance of new data on the origin, location, magnitude, and depth of earthquakes in this region and the propagation of earthquake waves to the surface. The central U.S. has experienced large earthquakes in the past from the New Madrid seismic zone and the Wabash Valley seismic zone.
The borehole will be drilled to bedrock at Sassafras Ridge in rural Fulton County by Layne Christensen, Inc. The site is near the most active part of the New Madrid seismic zone, providing the maximum amount of data from earthquakes in the zone. Scientific instruments placed in the new seismic hole will allow rigorous evaluation of the effects of earthquakes on bedrock and soil and the resulting ground motions in the region. During an earthquake the rock and soil in this area can amplify shaking, thus causing greater damage to structures such as buildings and bridges.
The station is expected to become the flagship observatory in the Kentucky Seismic and Strong-motion Network, which includes a series of 26 seismic monitoring stations operated by KGS and the Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences.
The five partners involved in the project have committed a total of $295,652 with a substantial amount of the funding coming from the United States Department of Energy through the Kentucky Research Consortium for Energy and Environment (KRCEE). The KRCEE was created in 2003 largely as a result of the efforts of Kentucky Senator Mitch McConnell.
TIME FRAME:
One Year
DELIVERABLES:
TEAM MEMBERS:
Dr. Edward W. Woolery, Assisstant Professor, Department of Geological Sciences
Dr. Zhenming Wang, Seismologist and Section Head (Geological Hazards), Kentucky Geological Survey
Steve Hampson, Assistant Director, Kentucky Research Consortium for Energy and Environment, University of Kentucky
REPORTS
Deep Hole Project Scope and Transmittal Letter to DOE
Deep Hole Project Press Release
KRCEE is a collaborative effort of Kentucky universities and is administered by the University of Kentucky.
