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Geological Society of America Special Papers

Active tectonics, tectonic geomorphology, and fault system dynamics: How

geoinformatics can help
J Ramón Arrowsmith

Geological Society of America Special Papers 2006;397;131-139

doi: 10.1130/2006.2397(09)

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Notes

Geological Society of America

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Geological Society of America

Special Paper 397
2006

Active tectonics, tectonic geomorphology, and fault system dynamics:

How geoinformatics can help

J Ramón Arrowsmith
Department of Geological Sciences, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona 85287-1404, USA

ABSTRACT

Active tectonics, tectonic geomorphology, and fault system dynamics investigate

deformation of continental crust over late Quaternary to annual time scales. These
interdisciplinary endeavors require joint analysis of diverse data sets and model
results. Data gathering and analysis driven by EarthScope and other large solid
earth science initiatives motivates a discussion of how to apply geoinformatics tools
to enhance these efforts. I use three information integration scenarios for earthquake
geology site context, basic digital elevation model (DEM) analysis, and tectonic geo-
morphology (all located in southern California) to show the kinds of analyses, inte-
grations, and visualizations that are commonly employed. Earthquake geology site
context along the San Jacinto fault ranges in scale from the San Andreas transform
boundary to high-resolution topography and balloon aerial photography. Manipula-
tions of a DEM for the Carrizo Plain illustrate the basic record of deformation and
surface processes recorded in the topography. Tectonic geomorphologic investiga-
tions at Wheeler Ridge include visualization of imagery and geology with topogra-
phy, raster calculations to produce a map of local relief, and the integration of fault
model calculations for surface uplift. Necessary data sets for these and other scenarios
include seismicity; crustal motion; stress; topography; remotely sensed imagery; and
maps of Quaternary faults, late Cenozoic subsidence and uplift, and Quaternary geol-
ogy. Necessary geoinformatics capabilities include visualization and cartography, file
format and database conversion, geostatistics, comprehensive data query capability,
data capture, field data capture, and physics-based deformation and landscape devel-
opment models. Collaborations will improve earth scientists’ ability to create knowl-
edge, while providing domain challenges for information technologists.

Keywords: geomorphology, structural geology, neotectonics, paleoseismology, geo-

informatics.

*E-mail: ramon.arrowsmith@asu.edu

Arrowsmith, J R., 2006, Active tectonics, tectonic geomorphology, and fault system dynamics: How geoinformatics can help, in Sinha, A.K., ed., Geoinformatics:
Data to Knowledge: Geological Society of America Special Paper 397, p. 131–139, doi: 10.1130/2006.2397(09). For permission to copy, contact editing@geoso-
ciety.org. ©2006 Geological Society of America. All rights reserved.

131
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132 J R. Arrowsmith
INTRODUCTION
Motivations
Earth science interpretations employ the fundamental under-
standings of the physics, chemistry, and biology of natural sys-
tems. Those fundamentals are usually coupled with a broad spa-
tial and historical data gathering and analysis approach. One of
the major research themes with great basic science interest and
broad earthquake and volcanic hazard applicability has been plate
tectonics, the theory of Earth processes posits that Earth’s solid
surface can be broken into a series of mobile, and largely coher-
ent and rigid, blocks that move independently. As these plates
move relative to each other, new solid material (lithosphere) may
be created, or plates may be pushed into the underlying astheno-
sphere, or the plates may move laterally past each other. Most
deformation occurs at these plate boundaries. However, oceanic
and continental lithospheric plates have different material prop-
erties, and interest has begun to focus on the active deformation
within more diffuse plate boundary zones and in continental inte-
riors. Active tectonics, tectonic geomorphology, and fault system
dynamics are subdomains of plate-tectonics investigations that
relate to continental crustal deformation over late Quaternary to
annual time scales.
Active tectonics is the study of crustal motions of inter-
est to society (Wallace, 1986). Active tectonics research ques-
tions include: What are spatial and temporal scales of conti-
nental lithospheric deformation? What are the roles of faulting
versus distributed deformation? What drives the deformation?
What is the role of preexisting heterogeneity? A related area of
research is tectonic geomorphology, which is the study of land-
forms and landscapes that record a measurable tectonic signal
(Burbank and Anderson, 2001). Typical research questions are:
How do surficial processes respond to deformation (and what
are the possible feedbacks between them)? How can we use
the signal of deformation in the landscape (and the late Quater-
nary) to bridge the gap between annual and million-year time
scales? Finally, fault system dynamics refers to the seismic and
aseismic processes operating within a network of many faults
over time scales from seconds to days to millennia. Example
research questions in this area with emphasis on the longer time
scales include: What are the spatial and temporal distributions
of earthquakes in a region over the (late) Holocene, and how
do they reflect the regime and the modulation of deformation?
What is the effect of mechanical interaction?
Answering these questions requires interdisciplinary collab-
orations and data and model integration. Geoinformatics provides
a powerful suite of tools to enable such integrative efforts. Out-
side of North America, “geoinformatics” commonly is synony-
mous with Geographic Information Science, which is the disci-
pline that brings together surveying, remote sensing, geography,
cartography, computer science, and statistics to develop tools for
the gathering, manipulation, archiving, processing, and visual-
ization of geospatial data. In the United States, earth scientists
and database information technology practitioners have co-opted
the name “geoinformatics” to refer more to extracting knowledge
from the rock record through construction of disciplinary data-
bases and developing a fully integrated geosciences information
network (e.g., http://www.geongrid.org/about.html).
EarthScope—A Motivating Initiative
Many of the above questions are at the heart of Earth-
Scope—a major equipment and science initiative in the solid
earth sciences using modern observational, analytical, and
telecommunications technologies to investigate the struc-
ture and evolution of the North American continent and the
physical processes controlling earthquakes and volcanic erup-
tions (http://www.earthscope.org). It has several components:
(1) USARRAY—a continental-scale seismic observatory of
fixed and mobile seismometers arrayed across North America,
(2) SAFOD (San Andreas Fault Observatory at Depth)—a
deep borehole designed to measure the conditions under which
earthquakes occur, (3) PBO (Plate Boundary Observatory)—a
geodetic observatory measuring the active deformation of the
crust and volcanoes of western North America, and ultimately
(4) InSAR (interferometric synthetic aperture radar)—a space-
based platform designed to provide a synoptic and high-preci-
sion measure of surface displacements. GeoEarthscope is a geo-
logic component in which the value of the temporal and spatial
context provided by geomorphic and geologic studies through
high-resolution topography and enhanced Quaternary geochro-
nological capability is emphasized (http://www.unavco.org/
pubs_reports/proposals/pbo/geo_pbo_wp.pdf). While Earth-
Scope provides a rallying point, the studies of active tectonics,
tectonic geomorphology, and fault system dynamics will con-
tinue beyond EarthScope, both in time and beyond the North
American continent.
How Geoinformatics Can Help
In order to assess how the tools of information technol-
ogy and geoinformatics in particular may enhance our ability to
address the questions identified above, I present three informa-
tion integration scenarios and related data system and modeling
tool descriptions: (1) earthquake geology site context, (2) basic
digital elevation model analysis, and (3) tectonic geomorphol-
ogy. In addition, I identify important geoinformatics tools, anal-
ysis methods, and data sets for addressing questions in active
tectonics, tectonic geomorphology, and fault system dynamics.
These are not comprehensive or definitive, but they do illustrate
the kinds of analyses, integrations, and visualizations that are
commonly employed. These scenarios and their associated data
system and modeling tools indicate areas of potential collabora-
tion with our information technology colleagues. Successful col-
laborations will improve the ability of earth scientists to create
knowledge, while providing useful domain challenges for infor-
mation technologists.
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Active tectonics, tectonic geomorphology, and fault system dynamics
INFORMATION INTEGRATION SCENARIOS
Earthquake Geology Site Context
Extending the earthquake record to prehistory requires
focused investigations of the effects of past earthquakes on
the ground surface. By documenting the local geomorphic and
stratigraphic record of ground rupture, and dating the deformed
units, it is possible to produce information about the fault’s
activity that can be used as input for seismic hazard investiga-
tions or to address active tectonics and fault systems dynamics
questions. Such documentation is usually done at a place where
the sedimentary record is easily accessible by excavation. To
complement and inform such research, contextual information
is necessary (e.g., Fig. 1).
The Hog Lake paleoseismic site is located along the San
Jacinto fault in an area of broad regional shearing of the Pacific–
North America plate boundary (Rockwell et al., 2003). Figure 1A
shows the Southern California Earthquake Center Horizontal
Deformation Velocity Map version 2 (http://www.scecdc.scec.
org/group_e/release.v2). Figure 1B shows a 1990 Landsat image
of the San Andreas fault system that includes three main faults: the
San Andreas fault, San Jacinto fault, and Whittier-Elsinore fault.
The deformation is partitioned among them. Each of the faults
traverses southern California mostly through a series of discon-
tinuous fault-parallel troughs. Figure 1C shows the USGS Digital
Orthophoto Quarter Quadrangle (DOQQ) images of the Hog Lake
site. This image is detailed enough to show the fault trough and
geomorphic setting. Whereas the images in Figures 1A–1C are
raster-based, vector data such as topographic and other features
we surveyed using a total station (Fig. 1D) are also important.
These data show the trench locations, field-defined fault traces,
and the geomorphic context for the earthquake geology investi-
gation. For example, the alluvial fan to the north dams flow from
the southeast to actually produce the low-energy sedimentation
environment conducive for preservation of the earthquake record
(Fig. 1F). In the field, we also used a balloon aerial photogra-
phy system to document the excavated site and microgeomor-
phology (Fig. 1E). I georeferenced the balloon photographs, and
their joint review with the topographic information is essential
for understanding the environment of formation implied by the
sediments exposed in the trench (Fig. 1F). Note that the balloon
photography is ~10 times higher resolution than the 1 m/pixel
DOQQs, illustrating the wide range of scales from which critical
information can be derived with a geoinformatics approach.
Basic Digital Elevation Model Analysis
Earth’s topography is a result of the combined effects of sur-
face and tectonic processes. The configuration of the landscape
also controls the types and rates of surface processes within a
given geologic and climatic regime. Digital elevation models
(DEMs) are available at various scales, ranging from 1 km with
nearly global coverage to tens of centimeters for local studies.
133
Their analysis is routine for active tectonics, tectonic geomor-
phology, and fault system dynamics (see Pike, 2002, for a recent
bibliographic review). The USGS (U.S. Geological Survey) has
made available a seamless DEM for the conterminous United
States called the National Elevation Dataset (NED; 10–30 m/
pixel) at http://seamless.usgs.gov.
Manipulation of the NED DEM of the Carrizo Plain of
south-central California illustrates some of the basic require-
ments necessary for DEM analysis (Fig. 2). Here, the north-
west-southeast-trending San Andreas fault cuts across the north-
east side of the plain. It is a closed basin perched 300–800 m
above the adjacent valleys (the Cuyama and San Juan Creek
drainages to the west, and the San Joaquin Valley to the east).
A perspective view of the elevation-coded DEM (Fig. 2A) and
the topographic contours (Fig. 2B) both show the Carrizo Plain,
the bounding ranges (Temblor to the northeast and Caliente and
La Panza to the southwest), and the surrounding valleys. Strata
in both sets of bounding ranges are deformed into broad arches
with smaller and tighter folds superimposed (e.g., Dibblee,
1974). Figures 2C and 2D show examples of simple raster- or
grid-based calculations that are essential for DEM analysis:
slope (first derivative of elevation with respect to horizontal dis-
tance) and aspect (facing direction of local slope), respectively.
They both enhance the small-scale features of the topography
in the Carrizo Plain and show that the flat Carrizo Plain and San
Joaquin Valley contrast with high slopes in the adjacent ranges.
These calculations also bring out some of the finer-scale tec-
tonic landforms along the San Andreas fault (Figs. 2C and 2E
inset) (e.g., Arrowsmith, 1995). For example, the topographic
aspect (Fig. 2D) highlights the San Andreas fault–parallel fabric
in the northwestern portion of the Carrizo Plain where numer-
ous folds were mapped by Dibblee (1974). Finally, interactive
drawing of arbitrarily oriented or stepped topographic profiles
further illustrates some of the physiographic patterns described
above (Fig. 2E). Both profiles show the perched Carrizo Plain,
bounding ranges, and even important active secondary struc-
tures such as the several-hundred-meter-high Elk Hills fold on
the northeast end of the southern profile.
Along with local slope (e.g., Fig. 2E), determination of
the drainage network and the associated drainage area above
a given point in the landscape (using DEM data and geoinfor-
matics tools) is critical for understanding controls on geomor-
phic processes (e.g., Whipple, 2004; Dietrich et al., 2003, and
numerous references in both). Local channel gradient can be
related to upstream drainage area as a power law in which the
coefficient of proportionality is the steepness index and the
power is the concavity index. These two parameters are most
often computed from DEMs, and they have been shown to be
sensitive to rock uplift and incision rate (among other things;
Whipple, 2004). Dietrich et al. (2003) (building on much previ-
ous work) and Hilley (2001) show how numerous landscape
thresholds (across which the surface processes may be driven
by surface uplift) are best depicted in terms of local slope and
contributing area.
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A
134 D
J R. Arrowsmith

San Jacinto
Fault

SCEC crustal motion map:

distribution of deformation
over southern California
over the last ~20 years

B E

SAF

SJF

WEF

F
C

Hog Lake

Figure 1. Data integration scenario for paleoseismic application at Hog Lake along the San Jacinto fault in southern California. The images span
scales from regional overview to the site level. A: Southern California Earthquake Center Horizontal Deformation Velocity Map version 2, show-
ing the several-hundred-kilometer-wide shear zone of the southern San Andreas fault system (from http://www.scecdc.scec.org/group_e/release.
v2/). B: 1990 Landsat image showing the physiographic setting of the major faults of the region. SAF—San Andreas fault, SJF—San Jacinto
fault, WEF—Whittier-Elsinore fault. C: USGS Digital Orthophoto Quarter Quadrangle (DOQQ) images with red colors indicating vegetation
near Hog Lake. D: Surveyed topography and other features at Hog Lake with the georeferenced balloon photograph shown in Figure 1E. Balloon
photography in action at lower right. E: Georeferenced balloon photography (15 cm resolution) over DOQQ (1 m/pixel). F: Photograph of one
of the paleoseismic excavations at Hog Lake. The stratigraphy records recurrent ground deformation of interfingered, fine-grained, organic-rich
marsh and gravel-rich alluvial-fan deposits (Rockwell et al., 2003).
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Kilometers
A D
Active tectonics, tectonic geomorphology, and fault system dynamics
0 5 10 15 20 CONTOUR
100
200
135
300
Contours + 400
500
Shaded Relief 600
700
800
900
1000
1100
1200
1300
1400
1500

B 0 5 10 15
Kilometers
20 E 0 5 10 15
Kilometers
20

Slope (degrees)
0 - 1.9
Shaded relief Slope 1.9 - 5.99
5.99 - 10.31
10.31 - 14.62
14.62 - 18.94
18.94 - 23.49
23.49 - 28.29
28.29 - 34.28
34.28 - 61.38

Kilometers Kilometers
C 0 5 10 15 20 F 0 5 10 15 20
Aspect
Elevation (m)
DEM + 1557 Aspect Flat (-1)
North (0-22.5)
Northeast (22.5-67.5)
Shaded Relief East (67.5-112.5)
Southeast (112.5-157.5)
55 South (157.5-202.5)
Southwest (202.5-247.5)
West (247.5-292.5)
Northwest (292.5-337.5)
North (337.5-360)

Figure 2 (continued on following page). Digital elevation model analysis scenario for the Carrizo Plain area, central California. The San Andreas
fault zone cuts through the center of this area from northwest to southeast. A: Oblique view of the USGS National Elevation Dataset (NED)
topography toward the southeast, showing the perched Carrizo Plain bounded on the left (northeast) by the Temblor Range and on the right
(southwest) by the Caliente Range. Shaded relief (B), elevation and shaded relief (C), and contours and shaded relief all depict the regional
geomorphology. Simple raster processing products from these data include slope (E) and aspect (F).
 Downloaded from specialpapers.gsapubs.org on October 25, 2010
136 J R. Arrowsmith
Northern Profile Kilometers
1500 0 5 10 15 20
Elevation (m)
Elevation (m)
1000
500
0 0
0 10,000 20,000 30,000 40,000
Distance (m)
Figure 2 (continued). G: Topographic profiles (SW-NE) across the NED (locations marked on the inset colored shaded relief map and C) cross-
ing the Caliente Range, the Carrizo Plain (the San Andreas fault is on the right or northeast side), and the Temblor Range. The inset photograph
shows the Dragon’s Back pressure ridge along the San Andreas fault in the Carrizo Plain just northwest of the southern profile.
Tectonic Geomorphology
Building on the simple DEM processing and visualization
presented above, the tectonic geomorphology scenario I present
illustrates data integration for the study of the interaction between
tectonic and surface processes. Typical tectonic geomorphology
studies include geologic mapping of young (mostly Quaternary)
rock units and landforms, topographic analyses (such as those
described in the previous section), and they may include model
calculations to aid interpretation.
Wheeler Ridge is a quintessential example of a tectonic
landform. It is an active fold, growing toward the southeast,
that has progressively narrowed, deflected, and defeated drain-
ages that once crossed the piedmont it deforms (Fig. 3). Drain-
age networks have developed on the fold, exposing its core.
This feature has been analyzed by numerous workers, including
Shelton (1966), Keller et al. (1998), Mueller and Talling (1997),
Brozovic et al. (1995), and Burbank and Anderson (2001). Aerial
photography (see perspective view of Fig. 3A) shows the main
features of the eastern part of the fold: the wind and water gaps
where paleodrainage cuts through the growing fold, the drainage
network development and incision in the older western portion
of the fold, and the deformed original piedmont surface in the
east. Keller et al. (1998) used relative and numerical age indica-
tors of soil development and drainage patterns to map five main
geologic units that document the eastward fold growth (Fig. 3C).
The angular relationship between the relatively shallow dip of the
geomorphic units and the steeply dipping fold core and the devel-
opment of the wind and water gaps indicate that the fold was
actively cut and beveled by piedmont processes prior to isolation
from further erosion and uplift (Mueller and Talling, 1997).
Burbank and Anderson (2001) use analysis of Wheeler
Ridge to highlight the importance of integrated structural, geo-
logic, and geomorphic analyses in studies of fault and fold
growth and landscape development and surface process response.
These determinations are made by employing a substitution of
space for time, or ergodic, hypothesis. To demonstrate an anal-
Southern Profile G
1500
1000
500
0 20,000 40,000 60,000
Distance (m)
ysis of this type, I calculated the topographic residual, or local
relief, over the eastern portion of the ridge (Figs. 3D and 3E).
The topographic residual is the arithmetic difference between
an enveloping topographic surface and the current topography
(Fig. 3B) (e.g., Bürgmann et al., 1994; Hilley, 2001; Burbank and
Anderson, 2001). To define the envelope, I used the extents and
elevations of the mapped deformed geomorphic surfaces over
the fold (from Keller et al., 1998) and prominent ridgelines. I
interpolated linearly between those elevations (cutting off some
intervening higher topography—thus the negative residuals) and
subtracted raster representations of the enveloping surface and
the actual topography. The maximum residual is ~127 m where
incision into the growing eastern portion of the fold is greatest
on its northern side and in the water gaps. As the fold propagates
eastward, deformation and uplift increase slopes, and throughgo-
ing channels are deflected and defeated, while locally drainages
initiate and remove material, exhuming the fold core (Burbank
and Anderson, 2001; Brozovic et al., 1995).
To illustrate how numerical models of deformation might be
used to interpret the deformation at Wheeler Ridge in our tectonic
geomorphology analysis, I used an elastic dislocation (boundary
element) model (Okada, 1985). This tool allows for the specifi-
cation of arbitrary displacement discontinuities along arbitrarily
oriented and located faults embedded in an elastic half-space. It
is useful for short time period crustal deformation modeling (see
discussions, for example, in King et al., 1988; Stein et al., 1988;
Taboada et al., 1993; Roering, 1995; Arrowsmith et al., 1996;
Burbank and Anderson, 2001). Figure 3F shows the vertical dis-
placements calculated on a roughly 200 m grid resulting from
1 m of slip along a 65° south-dipping blind thrust fault whose
tip is ~450 m below the crest of the fold. Peak surface displace-
ments of ~40 cm result along the fold axis. In addition, the model
simulates the asymmetry of the fold with its gentle south limb.
This slip and uplift signature might indicate what would happen
in a single earthquake (M ≈ 7) and what would be repeated many
times to build the overall topography of the fold (see Mueller and
Suppe, 1997; Mueller and Talling, 1997; Medwedeff, 1992; and
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B and fault system dynamics

Active tectonics, tectonic geomorphology,
1 0.25 0.5 1 Kilometers
137
A

C D
0 0.25 0.5 1 Kilometers

0 0.25 0.5 1 Kilometers

Residual (m)
High:127.7

Low:
? -53.2

E F 00 0.25
0.25 0.5
0.5 11Kilometers
Kilometer

Displacement
-0.14 --0.05
-0.04 -0.05
0.06 -0.17
0.18 -0.30
0.31 -0.43

Figure 3. Tectonic geomorphology analysis of Wheeler Ridge, central California. A: Perspective view of DOQQ imagery draped on NED to-
pography looking south-southwest over the eastward-growing fold. B: DEM and shaded relief of Wheeler Ridge. C: Geologic map with poly-
gons digitized and semitransparent over georeferenced geologic map from Keller et al. (1998). From youngest to oldest, the geologic units are
Tsj—Tertiary San Joaquin formation, Qt—Pliocene-Pleistocene Tulare formation, Qls—Quaternary landslide deposits, WRF—buried Wheeler
Ridge thrust fault, and Q1–Q5—progressively older geomorphic surfaces (Keller et al., 1998). D: Topographic residual (e.g., Bürgmann et al.,
1994; Hilley, 2001) produced by subtracting the current topography (Fig. 3B) from an enveloping surface defined partially by the geomorphic
surfaces in Figure 3C and the tops of prominent ridgelines. Note the improved information display with the transparency overlay on the DOQQ.
E: Drape of residual (Fig. 3D) and DOQQ on topography to better illustrate the relationship of residual to landforms. F: Vertical displacements
(cm) calculated from 1 m slip along 65° southwest-dipping blind thrust fault with a tip 450 m below the crest of the fold. The extent of this map
is the same as Figures 3B, 3C, and 3D. Note the geologic map from Keller et al. (1998) (Fig. 3C) underneath.
 Downloaded from specialpapers.gsapubs.org on October 25, 2010
138 J R. Arrowsmith
Keller et al., 1998, for more discussion). Stress transfer model-
ing of slip along an adjacent fault (such as the San Andreas fault)
and its loading on the Wheeler Ridge fault would be a simple
extension of the boundary element model (e.g., Stein and Toda,
2002). The direct integration of this elastic boundary element
model result with the other analyses simply demonstrates the
interpretive power that such tools add to a study of this type. The
elastic approach is presented here for illustrative purposes; no
doubt permanent aseismic and inelastic deformation contribute
to the growth of Wheeler Ridge. Other modeling tools that simu-
late landscape development might be brought to bear within such
an interpretive environment as well (e.g., Densmore et al., 1998;
Tucker et al., 2001).
REQUIRED DATA SETS AND TOOLS
The information integration scenarios presented above show
the kinds of investigations that geoinformatics tools can enhance.
The examples are not comprehensive, however. Given the breadth
of typical geologic investigations, it is difficult to a priori iden-
tify all of the data and analysis that are necessary. Nevertheless,
below, I identify a number of data sets and geoinformatics func-
tions of potential use in active tectonics, tectonic geomorphology,
and fault system dynamics studies.
• seismicity (instrumental, historic, paleoseismic)
• geodetically determined decadal velocity field (e.g.,
Fig. 1A)
• stress measurements (e.g., World Stress Map—http://
www.world-stress-map.org/)
• topography (DEMs at all scales; e.g., Figs. 1D, 2, and 3),
in particular at high spatial resolution and possibly gath-
ered using airborne laser swath mapping (e.g., http://www.
ncalm.ufl.edu/)
• imagery (Landsat/ASTER/aerial photos; e.g., Figs. 1B–1E
and 3A)
• Quaternary faults (locations, sense of motion, rates of
movement, recurrence interval; e.g., Figs. 1A and 3C)
• Late Tertiary–Quaternary subsidence and uplift (basins
and exhumation)
• geological maps, especially those emphasizing Quaternary
geology and geomorphology (e.g., Fig. 3C)
• geochronologic information
Information integration is evident with visualization tools.
However, some integration is simply impeded by format differ-
ences between typical tools used. For example, all of the visu-
alization and cartography I have presented in this paper is done
in ArcGIS 8.3 from Environmental System Research Institute
(ESRI; http://www.esri.com). However, many earth scientists
use the Generic Mapping Tools (GMT; http://gmt.soest.hawaii.
edu/). Both include some capability for Boolean and mathemati-
cal raster overlay and geostatistics. The largest difference is that
the ArcGIS tools allow attributes to be assigned to spatial objects,
which can be queried. GMT does not allow this fundamental GIS
(geographic information system) functionality. For the earth sci-
ence community to take advantage of databases and tools, the
databases must be populated, and information about the data
must be recorded in a coherent way. Ideally, these software tools
may even be brought into the field so that existing data and model
results may guide further observation. In addition, field-based
digital data collection reduces recording and transcription errors,
and limits the need for subsequent off-site digitizing. This capa-
bility significantly improves the quality of community data sets.
My tectonic geomorphology example discussed the importance
of the combination of models and data. Necessary geoinformat-
ics tool functionality includes:
• visualization/cartographic tools for combined mapping of
raster and vector data sets with simple grid math and inter-
polation capabilities, and the capability to visualize beyond
the 2.5 dimensions of digital topography draped with imag-
ery (Fig. 3A) to true three-dimensional structures and their
possible change with time (four dimensions).
• file format conversion tools
• geostatistical capability
• comprehensive geological and geomorphological data
query capability
• data population/upload tools
• mobile systems to augment field reality and permit field
data collection
• interpretive models for deformation (mechanical tools
such as those based upon the boundary and finite element
method) and landscape development
CONCLUSIONS
The study of active crustal deformation and surface process
response requires integration of diverse data and model results.
New insights may be gained (and required of the imminent
flood of data from EarthScope) if we can present our domain
(earth science) problems in a way that our information tech-
nology colleagues can recognize them as interesting challenges
with common themes in other domains. For example, are bio-
informatics applications portable to the geoinformatics envi-
ronment? Can the computational successes of astronomy and
atmospheric science inspire and become possible for earth sci-
entists? The GEON project (http://www.geongrid.org) is a large
collaboration between earth scientists and information technol-
ogy experts largely from San Diego Supercomputer Center.
The IT effort clearly leverages tool development from multiple
similar collaborations (ecology, bioinformatics, hydrologic sci-
ences, and atmospheric sciences).
In this paper, I have presented information integration sce-
narios that show how some workers might pursue their research
and that identify where integration enhances understanding. Nec-
essary data sets will have to be built, imported, manipulated, ana-
lyzed, visualized, and compared with model results using geoin-
formatics tools. Building and deploying such tools can change
the way that earth scientists produce knowledge, promoting a
cycle of knowledge creation, observation, and tool refinement.
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Active tectonics, tectonic geomorphology, and fault system dynamics
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
This paper is largely based on a presentation delivered at the
Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics Conference on
Mathematical and Computational Issues in the Geosciences,
March 2003, in Austin, Texas, at the Minisymposium on Geo-
informatics: Creating Cyberinfrastructure for the Geosciences
organized by Chaitan Baru and Vladik Kreinovich. Discussions
with GEON colleagues Nathan Toké, Dallas D. Rhodes, Tom
Jordan, and Lela Prashad have been helpful. Susan Selkirk
assisted with the figure production. Amy Rector helped with
the bibliography. Mike Zoldak taught me the raster analysis
used in Figure 3. I used the implementation of Okada (1985)
for Matlab by Brandon Meade. Online data from the Cali-
fornia Spatial Information Library (http://www.gis.ca.gov/),
the USGS National Map Seamless Data Distribution System
(http://seamless.usgs.gov), and the NASA Earth Science Appli-
cations Directorate Landsat MrSid Image server (https://zulu.
ssc.nasa.gov/mrsid/) made these demonstrations feasible and
are important examples of necessary open data access. Thank
you to José Hurtado and Jim Spotila for helpful and construc-
tive reviews. This work was supported by two National Sci-
ence Foundation grants: (1) ITR/IM+AP (GEO) Collaborative
research: Creation of a geospatial data system for the transition
between the Colorado Plateau and the Basin and Range prov-
inces (Geoinformatics in Action)—EAR-0112960; and (2) ITR
Collaborative research: GEON: A research project to create
cyberinfrastructure for the geosciences—EAR-0225543.
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