Fault Slip Rates

The faults shown on this map are used in modeling seismic shaking hazard maps. Faults with higher slip rates (the rate one side of the fault slides past the other side) tend to have more frequent earthquakes. Rates of earthquakes for each fault are used to calculate the probability of earthquake shaking. Shaded areas represent map view of inclined fault planes.

The fastest moving faults, such as the San Andreas shown on the left, have more and larger earthquakes than faults that do not slip as fast. The faults shown on the map represent a major source of the seismic shaking hazard. Photo by R. Wallace, USGS.