Catastrophic rock avalanche 3600 years BP from El Capitan, Yosemite Valley, California

Auteur(s) et Affiliation(s)

STOCK, G.M.

Yosemite National Park Service, Resources Management and Science, El Portal, Etats-Unis

UHRHAMMER, R.A.

Berkeley Seismological Lab., Univ. of California, Berkeley, Etats-Unis

Description :
The morphology and age of a rock avalanche deposit beneath El Capitan in Yosemite Valley indicates a massive prehistoric failure of a large expanse of the southeast face. The coincidence of ages, combined with the fact that the most recent (AD 1872) Owens Valley fault rupture triggered numerous large rock falls in Yosemite Valley, suggest that a large magnitude earthquake (≥M7.0) centered in the south-eastern Sierra Nevada may have triggered the rock avalanche. If correct, the extreme hazard posed by rock avalanches in Yosemite Valley remains present and depends on local earthquake recurrence intervals.

Type de document :
Article de périodique

Source :
Earth surface processes and landforms, issn : 0197-9337, 2010, vol. 35, n°. 8, p. 941-951, nombre de pages : 11, Références bibliographiques : 65 ref.

Date :
2010

Editeur :
Pays édition : Royaume-Uni, Chichester, Wiley

Langue :
Anglais