Seismologists Work to Uncover the Cause of Earthquake Swarms in Utah

Seismologists Work to Uncover the Cause of , Earthquake Swarms in Utah.

According to new research, earthquake swarms in the state of Utah may be linked to geothermal energy.

.

Fox News reports that seismologists at the University of Utah are going over decades of seismic data to determine the cause of earthquake swarms in the area.

The team of researchers believes that the series of tremors may be powered by a combination of hot water and geothermal activity.

Seismograph stations at the university have detected sequences of earthquakes of 1.5 magnitude or greater over the past 40 years.

Upon closer examination, the team was able to identify hundreds of additional smaller earthquakes occurring in 50 distinct sequences.

We’re all worried about the Wasatch Front, but the other thing to know is we have earthquakes all over Utah, Gesa Petersen, postdoctoral research fellow at the University of Utah, via Fox News.

We recorded a certain level, but in some of these places there’s probably earthquakes happening all the time that we just don’t see.

, Gesa Petersen, postdoctoral research fellow at the University of Utah, via Fox News.

That’s something that’s really important to get an understanding of, Gesa Petersen, postdoctoral research fellow at the University of Utah, via Fox News.

The team's findings were published by the American Geophysical Union earlier in July.

.

Fox News reports that the research is based on data from over 2,300 earthquakes, the largest of which was the magnitude 5.1 which struck east of Richfield in 1989