An Earth science program to explore the 4D structure of the North American continent

EarthScope Program Director (NSF) EarthScope Science and Education Advisory Committee (ESEC) EarthScope Facility Executive Committee (EFEC) USArray (IRIS) PBO (UNAVCO) SAFOD (Stanford) PROGRAM STRUCTURE EarthScope Facility Director EarthScope R&RA

EarthScope as an NSF/EAR Science Program Goal –Fundamental advances in geoscience Science driven Research based Peer reviewed Product –Scientific results Management Plan –NSF open program announcement Individual research grants Collaborative research grants –Focused research External research direction Integrative research centers –Strong partnerships USGS, NASA, DOE State surveys International

Science Goals Explore the Structure and Dynamics of the North American Continent Structure and evolution of the continent and deep Earth Earthquake processes and seismic hazards Magmatic processes and volcanic hazards Active deformation and tectonics Continental geodynamics Fluids in the crust Exploration and discovery Requires an Interdisciplinary Approach

First Solicitation 151 proposals requesting a total of $ 45,153, projects reviewed by panel –E&O - 15 –PBO - 14 –Research - 16 –SAFOD - 11 –USArray workshops proposed 19 projects funded –E&O - 2 –PBO - 3 –Research - 4 –SAFOD - 6 –USArray workshops supported ~ $ 3.4 million awarded

Examples of Projects E & O –Earth Live! - The EarthScope Video –Map Tools for EarthScope Science and Education PBO –Optimal Network Geometry for PBO –Understanding Volcanic Sources Through Improved Inversion of Deformation and Gravity Data Research –Seismic Characterization of Core Structure of the SAF using Fault Zone Guided Waves –The Cenozoic History of the Western US - a Data Integration Strategy for EarthScope SAFOD –SAFOD: Mineral Transformations and Patterns –Seismic Tomography and Location Calibration Around the SAFOD site USArray –Towards Characterizing Depth and Lateral Variations of Anisotropy Across the NA Continent –Receiver Reference Models: A Prototype for Automated Production of Data Products

Scientific Questions Balanced, timely, “complete” characterization of the SAFOD volume, including earthquake locations Capturing slow earthquakes Magmatic system eruption characterization (predictive) NRT 4D transform fault plate boundary behavior Development of integrated data analyses Identification/development of new scientific products Identification/development of new science education tools/modules Maximizing PBO and USArray geometry Planning FlexArray and campaign GPS deployments

Education and Outreach The EarthScope Program and the PI-based educational network require high degree of coordination Maintain the excitement, enthusiasm, and participation of the educational network community Insure that the “integrative link” education and outreach oversight duties of ESEC (now a FACA) are not lost Work with all parties to develop a community driven EarthScope E & O Program Seek appropriate resources to fully develop EarthScope E & O Support an EarthScope Education Coordinator in the EarthScope Office to coordinate E & O across the program

EarthScope as an NSF/EAR Facility Goal –Data in support of EAR science goals Science directed Community driven Open access Product –Data Science-appropriate Cutting edge technology Free and open access Quality control Management Plan –Oversight and governance Coordination and balance –Equipment Acquisition Specification Procurement Inventory and control –Operations Operation and maintenance Data management Technology R&D –Partnerships

NSF Awards $219 Million Over Five Years for EarthScope Project: Far-reaching geoscience effort to understand the North American continent October 15, 2003

USArray US Seismic Array a continental scale seismic array to provide a coherent 3-D image of the lithosphere and deeper Earth SAFOD San Andreas Fault Observatory at Depth a borehole observatory across the San Andreas Fault to directly measure the physical conditions under which earthquakes occur PBO Plate Boundary Observatory a fixed array of strainmeters and GPS receivers to measure real-time deformation on a plate boundary scale E&O Education and Outreach an educational and outreach program to bring the excitement of the exploration of our continent to the classroom and the public InSAR Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar images of tectonically active regions providing spatially continuous strain measurements over wide geographic areas. Facility Components

View within NSF Largest undertaking in NSF-EAR 1 st MREFC project for Earth Science Only NSF-requested MREFC funded in 4 yrs Full partnership w/USGS Distributed facility Test-case for the management and execution of NSF- funded large science projects

EarthScope Data All data from the permanent components of EarthScope will be available without restriction and in real time This includes data from: –PBO backbone network and clusters - GPS and strain –ANSS (USArray permanent) and Bigfoot –SAFOD Observatory instruments All data collected with EarthScope instruments, along with full metadata, will be archived and available through a unified EarthScope Data Portal

EarthScope is underway So far: Management structure developed & reviewed Project Execution Plan (PEP) developed & reviewed EarthScope Facility Director and some staff hired Within 5% of its schedule and milestones Within 1% of its budget Drill bit is turning, GPS & seismic data available $3,400,000+ in proposals have been funded New RFP is out w/ $4,000,000 available E&O Proposal in process of submission

Activities San Simeon Earthquake Response SAFOD Characterization Studies Array Operations Facility Approved EarthScope Facility office established

EarthScope Data Availability 10 EarthScope stations are operational and are recording data –4 ANSS stations in: Wyoming (1), Nevada (1), Texas (1), Alaska (1) –6 GPS stations in: Colorado (1) and in response to San Simeon Earthquake (5) Data flow and data availability –ANSS seismic data: via telemetry in real-time to IRIS DMC, available to public starting in May –GPS data: via satellite, manual download, and cellular telephone modem (end of April) to PBO, available now

EarthScope Facility Phases “The expected operational lifespan of this project is 15 years after construction is complete in FY 2007.” –National Science Foundation Budget Request FY 2005

EarthScope