NICHOLAS J. VAN DER ELST Curriculum Vitae U.S. Geological Survey, Earthquake Science Center Pasadena. CA Tel: 831 278 2287 nvanderelst@usgs.gov EDUCATION Ph.D. Earth & Planet. Sci. (2012) University of California, Santa Cruz PhD Thesis: The effect of seismic waves on earthquake nucleation and fault strength B.A. Earth & Planet. Sci. (Geophysics) (2004) University of California, Berkeley APPOINTMENTS Research Geophysicist (2015 present) United States Geological Survey, Earthquake Science Cente, Pasadena CA NSF-EAR Postdoctoral Research Fellow (2012 2014) Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, Div. of Seismol., Geology, & Tectonophysics Earthquake triggering as a measure of the evolving state of stress on real and laboratory faults. (Adviser H. M. Savage) Graduate Student Research Associate (2006 2012) University of California, Santa Cruz, Dept. of Earth and Planetary Science Earthquake triggering, statistics of earthquake interactions, and physics of experimental granular flow. (Adviser E. E. Brodsky) Seismologist (2004 2006) Pacific Gas & Electric Company, San Francisco, CA Routine seismic analysis (phase picking, (re-)locations, focal mechanisms, statistics), for the PG&E Central Coast Seismic Network PUBLICATIONS van der Elst NJ and Shaw BE (submitted) Larger aftershocks happen farther away: non-separability of magnitude and spatial distribution of aftershocks, Geophys. Res. Lett. Wang B, Harrington RM, Liu Y, Yu H, Carey A, van der Elst NJ (2015) Isolated cases of remote dynamic triggering in Canada detected using cataloged earthquakes combined with a matched-filter approach, Geophys. Res. Lett., doi:10.1002/2015gl064377. van der Elst NJ and Savage HM (2015) Frequency dependence of delayed and instantaneous triggering on laboratory and numerical faults governed by rate-state friction, J. Geophys. Res. Solid Earth, 120, doi:10.1002/2014jb011611 Hernandez S, Brodsky EE, van der Elst NJ (2014) The magnitude distribution of dynamically triggered earthquakes, Geochem. Geophys. Geosyst., 15, doi:10.1002/2014gc005404 Brodsky EE, and NJ van der Elst (2014) The uses of dynamic earthquake triggering,
Annual Reviews of Earth and Planetary Sciences (42) 317-339. van der Elst NJ, HM Savage, KM Keranen, GA Abers (2013) Enhanced remote earthquake triggering at fluid injection sites in the Midwestern United States, Science 341 (6142), 164-167. van der Elst NJ, EE Brodsky, T Lay (2013) Precursory remote triggering is not evident before great earthquakes, Bull. Seis. Soc. Amer. 103 (2B), 1522-1540. van der Elst NJ, EE Brodsky, PY Le Bas, PA Johnson (2012), Auto-acoustic compaction in steady shear flows: experimental evidence for the suppression of shear dilatancy by internal acoustic vibration, J. Geophys. Res., doi:10.1029/2011jb008897 Cooke, M and NJ van der Elst (2012), Rheologic Testing of wet kaolin reveals frictional and bi-viscous behavior typical of crustal materials, Geophys. Res. Let., 39 L01308, doi:10.1029/2011gl050186. van der Elst NJ and EE Brodsky (2010), Connecting near and farfield earthquake triggering to dynamic strain, J. Geophys. Res. doi:10.1029/2009jb006681. McLaren, M, JL Hardebeck, NJ van der Elst, JR Unruh, GW Bawden & JL Blair (2008), Complex faulting associated with the 22 December 2003 Mw 6.5 San Simeon, California earthquake, aftershocks and postseismic surface deformation, Bull. Seismol. Soc. Am. 98 (4), p. 1659-1680 INVITED TALKS Triggered and Induced Earthquakes (2014) IRIS Lunch and Learn Society of Exploration Geophysicists Annual Meeting, Denver Injection and Earthquakes: what science can say about anthropogenic earthquakes (2014) Dallas Sierra Club: Earth wind and fire energy summit, Addison, Texas. Earthquake triggering as a stress probe at fluid injection sites (2014) Earth Atmos. Planet. Sci, MIT, Cambridge, Mass. Earthquake triggering as a probe of critically stressed faults at fluid injection sites (2014) School of Earth and Atmos. Sci., Georgia Tech, Atlanta, Georgia. Earthquake triggering as a stress probe at fluid injection sites (2014) Solid Earth Seminar, Princeton Univ., New Jersey. Enhanced remote earthquake triggering at fluid injection sites in the Midwestern US (2013) Groundwater Protection Council, Annual Mtg., St. Louis, Missouri. Enhanced remote earthquake triggering at fluid injection sites in the Midwestern US (2013) BIRS workshop on statistics and triggering of earthquakes, Banff, Alberta Earthquake Triggering (2013) Pan American Studies Institute workshop on volcanotectonic interactions, Leon, Nicaragua. The effect of seismic waves on earthquake nucleation and fault strength (2012) McGill University.
Force chains and the rheology of granular media in the inertial transition (2010) Center for Nonlinear Studies, Los Alamos National Lab Dynamic earthquake triggering and the fragility of gouge-filled faults (2009) Division of Geophysics, Los Alamos National Lab. van der Elst N. J. and E. E. Brodsky (2009) Quantifying dynamic earthquake triggering in the near and far field, SSA annual mtg. (Seis. Res. Letters, 80(2), 374.). Connecting near and farfield earthquake triggering to dynamic strain (2009) USGS Earthquake Science Center, Menlo Park. TEACHING EXPERIENCE Teaching Assistant, University of Calif., Santa Cruz 2007-2011 Grad student TA trainer (2010, 2011) 5-week training course to prepare incoming grad students as teaching assistants. Earth as a Chemical System (Mineralogy) (2009) Introductory mineralogy and mineral identification (TA, lab instructor). The Dynamic Earth (Geophysics) (2007, 2008) (TA, Lab instructor) Teaching Assistant, Santa Ana College, Santa Ana, CA 2001-2002 Intro. Geology (TA, Lab Instructor) Historical Geology (TA, Lab Instructor) Field Courses in Regional Geology (a number of 3 7 day field trips) Staff Tutor, Science Study Center, Santa Ana College, CA 2001-2002 One-on-one and group tutoring in lower division Chemistry, Math, Physics, and Geology. GRANTS, FELLOWSHIPS, AND AWARDS Van der Elst, NJ (2015) Operational forecasting of large aftershocks on California Faults, USGS Mendenhall Fellowship van der Elst, NJ (2014) Mapping future aftershocks on California faults, SCEC award #14146 Savage, H. M. and N. J. van der Elst (2014) Investigating fluid triggered slip in the lab, SCEC award #13117. van der Elst, N. J. and H. M. Savage (2012-2014) Earthquake triggering throughout the seismic cycle, NSF-EAR Postdoctoral Fellowship. Brodsky E. E., P. A. Johnson, and N. J. van der Elst (2008-2011) Granular flow rheology and earthquake faults, IGPP/LANL. van der Elst, N. J. (2009) PhD thesis proposal: Earthquake triggering and the rheology of granular fault cores, UCSC Waters Award. ARCS Foundation Fellowship (2008) Honorable Mention, NSF Graduate Research Fellowship (2007) Chancellor s Fellowship, University of California, Santa Cruz (2006)
Summer of Applied Geophysical Experience, LANL (2004) JPL Undergraduate Scholar (2002) Santa Ana College President's Scholar (2002) SYNERGISTIC ACTIVITIES Science in the Classroom: Contributing author to Quake, Rattle, and Roll. Seminar coordinator (2013-2014) Div. of Seismology, Geology, and Tectonophysics, LDEO EarthWEST transfer student workshop on scientific inquiry (Co-designer, facilitator), UC Santa Cruz (2012) Co-adviser for undergraduate researchers at UCSC (Aviel Stern, Kevin Bernardo) (2012) Graduate student representative to the faculty, UCSC (2008-2011) Emergency response team, Pacific Gas & Electric (First aid, search and rescue, community outreach). (2004-2006) Reviewer for BSSA, Geology, NSF, Nature Geosci., GRL, SRL, JGR, GJI, USGS FIELDWORK 2013 fault gouge sampling at Devils Punchbowl, CA. 2007-2011 Ground-based Lidar mapping of slip-surface topography and striations. Faults in California, Oregon, and Italy. Glacial beds at Tenaya Canyon, CA, and Blackfoot glacier, MT. Fault-bounded extrusive volcanics, Mt. St. Helens crater, WA. 2002 Speleological mapping, Eagle Lutch Mine, San Gabriel Mountains, CA RECENT SELECTED ABSTRACTS van der Elst NJ and Shaw BE (2015) Larger aftershocks happen farther away, SSA annual meeting, Pasadena Ca. van der Elst NJ and Savage HM (2014) Response of Laboratory faults to transient stressing, AGU annual meeting. van der Elst NJ, Brodsky EE, Johnson PA (2014) Suppression of dilation by internally-generated acoustic vibration in granular shear flows, Gordon Research Conference on Granular and Granular-fluid flow, Easton, Mass. van der Elst NJ and Savage HM (2014) Earthquake triggering along the Hikurangi Margin of New Zealand, Seismol. Soc. of Amer. Annual Meeting, Anchorage AK van der Elst, N.J., H. M. Savage, K. M. Keranen, G. A. Abers (2013) Enhanced remote triggering at fluid injection sites in the Midwestern US, Banff International Research Station, Statistics and Triggering of Earthquakes, http://www.birs.ca/workshops/2013/13w2171/programme13w2171.pdf
van der Elst, N. J. and H. M. Savage (2013) Variations in remote triggering susceptibility along the Hikurangi margin: implications for the time-dependent strength of subduction zones, Geoprisms planning workshop, Te Papa Museum, Wellington, New Zealand van der Elst N. J., E. E. Brodsky, and Lay, T. (2012) Precursory remote triggering is absent before large earthquakes, Eos Trans. AGU, Fall Meet. Suppl., Abstract S51F-07. van der Elst N. J., E. E. Brodsky, P-Y. Le Bas, and P. A. Johnson (2011), Autoacoustic compaction in steady shear flows: Experimental evidence for suppression of shear dilatancy by internal acoustic vibration, Eos Trans. AGU, Fall Meet. Suppl., Abstract T11E-04. van der Elst, N. J., and E. E. Brodsky (2011), The hunt for the global triggering cascade, 7th International Workshop on Statistical Seismology, http://www.gein.noa.gr/statsei7/forms/statsei7_abstracts.pdf van der Elst, N. J., E. E. Brodsky, and H. M. Savage (2010), Triggerability varies inversely with seismicity rate, Eos Trans. AGU, Fall Meet. Suppl., Abstract T41B- 2132