The Cedar Mountain, Nevada, earthquake of December 20, 1932

Abstract

An earthquake of major intensity originated in the area east and northeast of Mina in southwest central Nevada on December 20, 1932. The principal shock occurred at about 10h 10m 04s p.m. P.S.T., and was definitely perceptible over an area of some 400,000 square miles, including Nevada, the greater part of California, and parts of Oregon, Idaho, Utah, and Arizona. A circle including such outlying places as Rawlins, Wyoming; Cottonwood, Idaho; San Diego, California, and Klamath Falls, Oregon, would have an area of nearly a million square miles. It thus ranks as a major American earthquake, yet is remarkable in that there was no loss of life and very little damage to property. The explanation for this condition must be sought in the sparse population (scarcely a dozen people in the epicentral area), location of almost all structures on bedrock, lack of water‐soaked alluvium, and probable great depth of origin of the shock.

Modern strain localization in the central Walker Lane, western United States: Implications for the evolution of intraplate deformation in transtensional settings

“…2A and 5A). Strike-slip motion within the Cedar Mountain rupture zone occurred along faults that strike more northerly than the well-established faults of the Walker Lake domain (Gianella and Callaghan, 1934;Caskey et al, 1996;Bell et al, 1999;Wesnousky, 2005b) but subparallel to existing mapped normal faults in the CNSB to the north.…”

Compilation of known or suspected Quaternary faults within 100km of Yucca Mountain, Nevada and California

“…Y-182 (p. 21) proposed that the interaction between CB and the Yucca Frenchman shear zone has enhanced north-northwest extension and subsidence of Yucca Flat. References: Y-13: dePolo and others, 1987;Y-14: Gianella and Callaghan, 1934;Y-15: Bell, 1988;Y-16: Doser, 1987;Y-17: Gianella and Callaghan, 1934;Y-170: Molinari, 1984 (his Stewart-Monte Cristo fault zone); Y-794: dePolo and others, 1988;Y-795: Bell and others, 1988 (p. 1-25 to 1-36); Y-797: Bell and others, 1987;Y-969: Shawe, 1965;Y-1069: Yount andothers, 1993;Y-1070: Yount and others, 1993:Y-1074: Doser, 1988Y-1075Y- : Molinari. 1983.…”

Proceedings of the workshop on Paleoseismology, 18-22 September 1994, Marshall, California

“…These hypotheses are: multiple earthquake subevents (Doser, 1988) triggered primary events on adjacent and/or proximal faults upwards splaying and distribution of faulting from depth (Gianella and Callaghan, 1934) "wrench faulting tectonics" ashflow detachment deflection (Molinari, 1984) faulting distributed into deformation of low-competency sediments distribution of faulting in low-competence Miocene sediments reactivation of folding in sediments (Molinari, 1984) secondary or sympathetic faulting faulting induced on adjacent or splay faults to the primary rupture triggering of shallow slip on proximal faults, probably from shaking.…”