Earthquake Information Seismologists work to improve the velocity models and computer algorithms used to locate earthquakes and determine earthquake motion. Improving catalogs of earthquake locations helps us understand past occurrences and determine future occurrences. When such evidence can be dated by radiocarbon or other methods, earthquake histories over thousands of years can be reconstructed. Hazards All of the research into where, how, when, and why earthquakes occur feeds into determination of the national seismic hazard maps. Scientists use the results of research in probability determinations for the National Seismic Hazards Map.
Regional studies supplement the national maps.
Studies of the waves from these earthquakes help map the structure of the Earth's crust, the orientation of stresses in it, and the movement of the faults within it. Near large earthquakes, seismic waves have large amplitudes. Studying this strong shaking requires specialized sensors and produces information used in developing building codes and in designing earthquake-resistant structures such as buildings, bridges, and highways.