Searching for hidden earthquakes in Southern California

Abstract

Using earthquakes to find earthquakes Earthquake catalogs elucidate the behavior of faults and allow for rough estimates of when large earthquakes might occur. Cataloging small earthquakes is challenging because the small signal is often indistinguishable from noise. Ross et al. used a template-matching algorithm to find almost two million tiny earthquakes previously missed by other earthquake-logging techniques in Southern California (see the Perspective by Brodsky). This more-complete catalog can be used to better understand faults, earthquake reoccurrence, and other geophysical processes. Science , this issue p. 767 ; see also p. 736