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Virtual Tour of the San Andreas Fault at the
Carrizo Plain
using Kite Aerial Photography
The USGS recently developed a system for taking aerial photographs
from a kite. Kite Aerial Photography (KAP) is not a new idea. In fact, it was used as early as 1889 by Arthur Batat in France.
In 1906, George
Lawrence used KAP to document damage resulting from the great San Francisco
earthquake. He used a series of at least 15 kites to lift
his 49-pound camera
over the city. Of course, modern cameras are much lighter, and it takes only a single
large parafoil kite (30 square ft) to lift our camera and rig weighing
in at under 3 pounds. The camera is attached to the kite line and
controlled remotely from the ground using a radio control for a
model airplane.
The San Andreas fault, with a length of more than 700 miles (1100
kilometers), is the boundary between the Pacific and North American
tectonic plates. The stretch that runs through the Carrizo Plain
National Monument south of Parkfield (see map) is unique because
the surface expression of the fault trace is very well defined.
This is because the Carrizo Plain is arid, and the fault has not
been significantly eroded. |
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View looking southeast along the surface trace of
the San Andreas fault in the Carrizo Plain, north of Wallace
Creek. Elkhorn Rd. meets the fault near the top of the
photo. (Click image for a larger view)
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| Closeup shot of the same area above. The cross-cutting
feature is a road cut going through the fault. (Click
image for a larger view) |
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| Type |
Recommended Platforms |
Connection Speed |
| Java |
Windows, Unix |
Connection: Fast
| Slow |
| Quicktime |
Mac, Windows |
Connection: Fast
| Slow |
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| On January 9, 1857, the M 7.9 Fort Tejon earthquake
occurred just north of the Carrizo Plain. At Wallace
Creek, in the Carrizo Plain, the fault moved 30
feet (9m), forming the offset stream channel seen
in the interactive photo above. The rupture zone
extended nearly 220 mi (350km) from near Parkfield
at the northwest end to the vicinity of San Bernardino,
east of Los Angeles. |
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Photos by Scott Haefner, USGS. |
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