Hunting Teton Paleo Earthquake Records in Jackson Lake

This lecture explores the challenges and recent advances in reconstructing the history of Teton fault earthquakes over the past 15,000 years. Discover how Dr. Ryan Thigpen from the University of Kentucky uses innovative techniques to study earthquake records preserved in Jackson Lake sediments. Learn about the limitations of traditional fault trench studies and how lake sediment analysis provides more sensitive earthquake detection through turbidites and Mass Transport Deposits (MTDs). Follow the journey of a multiyear research project culminating in the collection of a 31-meter continuous core from 425 feet below Jackson Lake's surface in 2023. Examine how the discovery of an 11,200-year-old Glacier Peak ash layer helps date the core, which contains evidence of at least 8 MTD intervals and numerous paleo-wildfires. Understand the "synchronicity criterion" that allows researchers to identify true seismic events from other sediment disturbances, and how ongoing radiocarbon dating will provide precise ages for these earthquakes, significantly enhancing our understanding of Teton fault activity over the past 11,000 years.