While this site is under construction, this page will act as an index to Joshua Tree National Park’s earthquake and geology web pages and resources. Please feel free to let us know what you think at the e-mail link below.

What’s Shaking in Joshua Tree?

Aerial photo of part of the Hector Mine earthquake surface rupture. Arrows and offset tire tracks show the direction the ground moved. This kind of side-by-side movement is typical of strike-slip faults. Photo courtesy of Paul "Kip" Otis-Diehl, USMC, 29 Palms. Click here to see more! A magnitude 7.1 earthquake rocked the Joshua Tree National Park region at 2:46 a.m. local time Saturday, October 16, 1999. The event was located in the Mojave desert, about 47 miles east-southeast of Barstow and 32 miles north of Joshua Tree. The earthquake occurred on the Lavic Lake fault, which slices in a north-northwest direction through the eastern Mojave shear zone. Scientists have identified a 40-kilometer long surface rupture within the Twenty Nine Palms Marine Base. So far, a maximum offset of 3.8 - 4.7 meters was measured.

Site contents What’s Shaking in Joshua Tree! Hector Mine earthquake Shaded Relief Map: Hector Mine earthquake (10/19/99) - 130 MB image Aerial photos of Hector Mine earthquake rupture zone Hector Mine EQ ground-shaking intensity maps Hector Mine EQ damage reports and more Map of seismograph network in the Joshua Tree region See a Hector Mine earthquake seismogram Map showing recent Hector Mine earthquake activity Links to other Earthquake Information All About Earthquakes - Earthquake intensity - Earthquake magnitude - Faults - Earthquake epicenter and focus - See Sunset Crater’s seismograph Earthquake ABC - for kids! For parents! Putting Down Roots in Earthquake Country More Earthquake Links U.S. Geological Survey Earthquake Information Map of California’s recent earthquakes Ground motion maps of recent earthquakes Seismo-links Exhaustive link list!

| U.S. Geological Survey Pasadena Office of Earthquake Information | | Joshua Tree earthquake home | Joshua Tree National Park home |

| USGS Geology in the Parks home | NPS Park Geology Tour home | This site is a cooperative endeavor of the US Geological Survey Western Region Earth Surface Processes Team and the National Park Service. Please share your comments and suggestions with us! parkgeology@den.nps.gov http://www.nature.nps.gov/grd/usgsnps/jotr/jotr1.html This page was last updated on 10/19/99