Scientists to place new earthquake monitors in Georgia

Friday, November 18, 2011

photo This image shows the earthquake in Dalton, Ga., recorded by Tellus Science Museum. It was centered one mile west southwest and occurred about 5 miles deep.

ATLANTA (AP) - Researchers in a nationwide study of earthquakes will soon place new instruments beneath the Georgia red clay and in other eastern states as they seek to learn more about what causes them and where they might strike.

Scientists say an August earthquake in Virginia, which cracked the Washington Monument, has led to a renewed emphasis on trying to understand more about what lies below the Earth's surface in eastern states.

In Georgia, instruments will soon blanket the state, allowing researchers to see for the first time how seismic activity is connected to other regions. Monitors from the project are already in place in the western parts of Alabama and Tennessee.

USArray Director Bob Woodward says he's excited about the potential for discoveries in Georgia and states in the Appalachian mountains.