In most cases, however, these values need to be supported or adjusted with field measurements. The most uncertain parameters are how often earthquakes occur along a fault and, especially, when the next large earthquake will occur along a particular fault or in an area. We need to know better not only the paleofrequency of earthquakes along individual faults, but also the earthquake behavior of the faults and what affects that behavior. Stress and strain interactions between adjacent faults influence earthquake activity as well, and may also help us understand the likelihood of earthquakes. The results of this study underscore that earthquake faults are a statewide hazard.
Large earthquakes can occur nearly everywhere in Nevada.
The main variation across the State is the frequency of these earthquakes. This is consistent with the historical earthquake pattern in which most events have occurred in western Nevada, fewer in eastern Nevada, and fewer still in southern Nevada. The fault data are inconsistent with the historical earthquake record in that no large earthquakes have occurred during the historical record in eastern and southern Nevada. However, the fault data assure that at some time in the future, they will.