Research

Where in the world?

This map shows the locations of projects we are currently working on, along with a brief description of each project.

Seismic Attenuation

As seismic waves travels through the subsurface they loose energy to a variety of different mechanisms. In the mantle, these include intra-grain and inter-grain processes that are sensitive to temperature and grain size, as well as melt-related processes. Understanding seismic attenuation in the mantle can help reduce the uncertainty in interpreting other seismic velocity and other geophysical models and provide insights on mantle rheology. In our group we focus on body-wave attenuation from the analysis of teleseismic events.

Selected Publications

Bezada, M. J., Byrnes, J. S., Zhu, Z., & Lee, H. (2023). Lateral Variations in Teleseismic Attenuation of the Conterminous U.S. and New Insights Derived From Its Relationship to Mantle Seismic Velocity. Journal of Geophysical Research: Solid Earth, 128(12), e2023JB027299. https://doi.org/10.1029/2023JB027299

Zhu, Z., Bezada, M. J., Byrnes, J. S., & Ford, H. A. (2021). Evidence for Stress Localization Caused by Lithospheric Heterogeneity From Seismic Attenuation. Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems, 22(11), e2021GC009987. https://doi.org/10.1029/2021GC009987

Deng, Y., Byrnes, J. S., & Bezada, M. (2021). New Insights Into the Heterogeneity of the Lithosphere-Asthenosphere System Beneath South China From Teleseismic Body-Wave Attenuation. Geophysical Research Letters, 48(6), e2020GL091654. https://doi.org/10.1029/2020GL091654

Seismic Anisotropy

Our work on seismic anisotropy is focused on removing the "isotropic glasses" from regional P-wave velocity models.

Selected Publications

Lee, H., Kim, Y., Bezada, M. J., & Clayton, R. W. (2023). The Role of Subslab Low-Velocity Anomalies Beneath the Nazca Ridge and Iquique Ridge on the Nazca Plate and Their Possible Contribution to the Subduction Angle. Geophysical Research Letters, 50(23), e2023GL106096. https://doi.org/10.1029/2023GL106096

Lee, H., Bezada, M. J., & Faccenda, M. (2021). Can sub-slab low-velocity anomalies be an artifact caused by anisotropy? A case study from the Alboran slab area in the western Mediterranean. Tectonophysics, 819, 229080. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tecto.2021.229080

Bezada, M. J., Faccenda, M., & Toomey, D. R. (2016). Representing anisotropic subduction zones with isotropic velocity models: A characterization of the problem and some steps on a possible path forward. Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems, n/a-n/a. https://doi.org/10.1002/2016GC006507

The Wyoming Craton

Selected Publications

Ford, H. A., Bezada, M. J., Byrnes, J. S., Birkey, A., & Zhu, Z. (2021). The CIELO Seismic Experiment. Seismological Research Letters. https://doi.org/10.1785/0220210237

Tectonics of NW South America

Selected Publications

Sun, M., Bezada, M. J., Cornthwaite, J., Prieto, G. A., Niu, F., & Levander, A. (2022). Overlapping slabs: Untangling subduction in NW South America through finite-frequency teleseismic tomography. Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 577, 117253. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.epsl.2021.117253

Cornthwaite, J., Bezada, M. J., Miao, W., Schmitz, M., Prieto, G. A., Dionicio, V., et al. (2021). Caribbean Slab Segmentation Beneath Northwest South America Revealed by 3-D Finite Frequency Teleseismic P-Wave Tomography. Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems, 22(4), e2020GC009431. https://doi.org/10.1029/2020GC009431

Bezada, M. J., Levander, A., & Schmandt, B. (2010). Subduction in the southern Caribbean: Images from finite-frequency P wave tomography. Journal of Geophysical Research: Solid Earth, 115(B12), B12333. https://doi.org/10.1029/2010JB007682

Deep seismicity

Selected Publications

Sun, M., & Bezada, M. (2020). Seismogenic Necking During Slab Detachment: Evidence From Relocation of Intermediate-Depth Seismicity in the Alboran Slab. Journal of Geophysical Research: Solid Earth, 125(2), e2019JB017896. https://doi.org/10.1029/2019JB017896

Bezada, M. J., & Humphreys, E. D. (2012). Contrasting rupture processes during the April 11, 2010 deep-focus earthquake beneath Granada, Spain. Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 353–354(0), 38–46. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.epsl.2012.08.001

Environmental Seismology

Although our group's work focuses on mantle imaging and tectonic problems, we are exploring applications of seismology to study fluvial processes and very shallow lake bathymetry (with implications to wild rice growth). In both cases we are utilizing (or planning to utilize) data from DAS instrumentation. For investigating fluvial processes, we plan to leverage the resources of the Saint Anthony Falls Laboratory.