UF Geophysics Professor Plans Scientific Trip To Chile's Earthquake Zone

Chile’s president is urging citizens along the coast of his country to move quickly to higher ground following five strongly felt aftershocks, including the biggest since last month’s eight-point-eight magnitude quake. A University of Florida geophysics professor is anxious to get to the Chile earthquake zone. Professor Ray Russo will work with a team of specialists from around the country to deploy and operate about a hundred high-sensitivity earthquake recorders to measure aftershocks in the area. The team hopes to determine the extent and nature of the fault that slipped in late February in Chile. Information gathered could provide insight into how adjacent segments of the Nazca-South America plate boundary might behave in the next few decades. Russo talked with WUFT’s Donna Green-Townsend about the research team and how they plan to go about their work in Chile.