1999 Hector Mine earthquake

E1008730

The 1999 Hector Mine earthquake was a powerful magnitude 7.1 strike-slip earthquake in the Mojave Desert of Southern California that caused widespread ground rupture and was one of the largest earthquakes in the region in the late 20th century.

All labels observed (1)

Label Occurrences
1999 Hector Mine earthquake canonical 3

How this entity was disambiguated

Statements (47)

Predicate Object
instanceOf earthquake
strike-slip earthquake
aftershocks thousands of aftershocks over subsequent months
casualties no direct fatalities
category 1999 earthquakes
1999 natural disasters in the United States
Earthquakes in California
caused offset of roads and railroad tracks
country United States
damage damage to roads and rail lines
ground cracking and liquefaction in some areas
light to moderate structural damage
date 1999-10-16
October 16, 1999
depth about 20 km
distanceFrom about 44 km north of Joshua Tree, California
about 47 km east of Barstow, California
epicenterNear Hector Mine
Twentynine Palms, California
faultType strike-slip
injuries minor injuries
localTime 02:46:44 PDT
locatedIn California
Mojave Desert
San Bernardino County, California
Southern California
maximumMercalliIntensity VII (Very strong)
maximumSurfaceDisplacement about 5.5 m
momentMagnitude 7.1
notableFor extensive surface fault rupture in a sparsely populated area
one of the largest late 20th-century earthquakes in Southern California
observedWith strong-motion seismographs across Southern California
occurredInTectonicSetting transform plate boundary between Pacific Plate and North American Plate
partOf seismicity of the Eastern California Shear Zone
precededBy 1992 Landers earthquake
recordedBy United States Geological Survey
region Eastern California Shear Zone
rupturedFault Bullion fault
Hector Mine fault zone
Lavic Lake fault
scientificSignificance important for studies of triggered seismicity and fault interaction
used to study dynamic triggering of distant earthquakes
seismicMoment on the order of 10^19 N·m
surfaceRuptureLength about 40 km
time 09:46:44 UTC
triggeredBy 1992 Landers earthquake (static stress changes)
USGSEventId ci14383980

How these facts were elicited

Referenced by (3)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

Eastern California Shear Zone notableEarthquake 1999 Hector Mine earthquake
Lavic Lake fault rupturedIn 1999 Hector Mine earthquake
Lavic Lake fault associatedWithEarthquake 1999 Hector Mine earthquake