SEATTLE —
As scientists in the northwest work to increase seismic monitoring in the region, they’re now shifting focus to areas beyond metro populations, adding more seismometers to volcanoes and planning underwater expansion as well.
Doug Gibbons, research engineer at the University of Washington’s Pacific Northwest Seismic Network (PNSN), said the United States Geological Survey (USGS) determined that more than 600 seismometers are needed for adequate coverage.
“The shaking from that epicenter is going to hit a station sooner if there’s more stations. If we only have a handful of stations, that seismic wave may have to travel dozens of miles before it’s detected, which eliminates several seconds of extra warning,” said Gibbons.
Ten years ago, there were about 240 seismometers across Washington and Oregon. After a decade focused on expansion, there are now about 700 seismometers hidden away in hidden places around the region.
“We’re tucked away into a lot of janitors closets or IT closets at schools and fire stations,” said Gibbons.
Gibbons said now that that goal has been reached, they’re able to expand beyond.
PNSN has slowly been upgrading monitoring sites on Pacific Northwest volcanoes. Last year, Mount Baker received updates. Now, the focus is on Glacier Peak, which has one single outdated seismometer.
“What's up there right now is kinda like a black and white TV, and we’re putting a 4K TV up there,” he said.
Gibbons explains that ideally, at least three stations are needed to triangulate where rumbling comes from.
On both Mount Rainier and Mount St. Helens, there are about 20 instruments. Currently, Glacier Peak just has one outdated seismometer. The next closest are miles away in Leavenworth and Darrington.
“Glacier Peak hasn’t had any locatable seismicity over the past 30 days. Is that because there’s no seismicity or is that because we don’t have enough instruments to locate those little earthquakes?” Gibbons asked.
The team hiked up Glacier Peak as a helicopter took multiple trips, dropping off the instruments needed for the first phase of the upgrade.
“To get a little bit of seismic data, just a trickle of tiny squiggles back from the mountain is a big process,” said Gibbons.
However, that little bit of data is huge for both monitoring and preparedness. Seconds matter when it comes to early warning, and all of this data collected helps paint a bigger picture of seismic activity in the northwest.
“The more we know, the more we’re learning, the more data we’re collecting, the better that’s going to be for us right now and for research down the road. Not just research next week and next month but research in the next few years, in the next 10 years,” said Gibbons.
The expansion goes beyond volcanoes as well. Right now, 100% of monitoring stations are on land. In 2026, scientists hope to add seismometers underwater off of Oregon’s coast to monitor rumblings on the ocean floor as well.