FINAL PROJECT 2015 World Seismic Activity Analysis

Your final project will be submitted online as a Google Slides presentation worth 40 points
(two labs). You are to develop an analysis of your chosen zone, and to that end we have provided
several data sets that you may find useful as supporting evidence for your ultimate conclusion.
This is an important aspect of how real geologists work. The following files can be found in
your FINAL PROJECT/Data folder. Play around with these features on your ArcMap and/or
ArcScene display. Some will prove more useful than others, depending on your area of focus.

A raster image of the Earths surface (World Image.lyr) Useful for locating mountain
ranges, including mid-ocean ridges and trenches)

A polygon that outlines the land area for each zone. Named by zone (e.g. Nazca)

A raster image of seafloor age (seafloorage.tif): red is young, blue is old.

A vector file of all active volcanoes (2007volcanoes.shp): display as red triangles.

A vector file of boundaries. (boundaries.shp)

A digital elevation model of the Earth as a raster. Used with ArcScene to create 3D
images (C:\ArcGIS_Data\World_dem\GlobalDEM\World_dem.tif)

1. You should have already made some basic observations regarding seismicity patterns in your
zone. You will demonstrate your analytical and communication skills by studying the plate
boundary or boundaries that are in your zone, and then accounting for the distribution of the
earthquake depth and magnitude data as an indicator of the boundary type.
SLIDE 1: Create an introductory slide that identifies your zone and all group members.
2. One at a time, open each of the 2D (ArcMap) views magnitude and depth along with your
zone (the z-yourzone.shp) layer.
3. Copy and paste these images onto the next two slides of your presentation. Provide labels to
identify patterns/trends you observe regarding the distribution of earthquake depths and/or
magnitudes. (e.g. All earthquakes were shallow, with depths ranging from 3-23 kilometers.)
SLIDE 2: Image of earthquake magnitude distribution with notes/annotations.
SLIDE 3: Image of earthquake depth distribution with notes/annotations.
4. Open your ArcScene file, and then carefully select two different oblique scenes that provide a
sense of the spatial distribution of earthquake foci. (Depth and location relative to surface
features such as mountains, volcanos, and trenches.) This is where the digital elevation model
layer might prove most helpful. You may leave this and/or any other layers in your selected
scene if you think they help demonstrate important correlations. Paste these images onto the
next two slides.
SLIDES 4 & 5: Oblique images of earthquake distribution with notes/annotations.
5. On the next slide indicate the type of boundary as you see it, supporting your choice with
data collected and displayed in ArcMap and ArcScene. Provide a summary of the data that
you think were important to determining the nature of your plate boundary.

FINAL PROJECT 2015 World Seismic Activity Analysis

For example, lets say you decide a boundary is of the convergent ocean-ocean variety. Your
analysis should include a conclusive statement describing the location of your zone and the
type of plate boundary you have determined it to be. You might refer to the information
provided in the Plate Tectonics With Google Earth activity that you completed at the
beginning of the quarter. (And, of course, feel free to research anything you think might help
make your case.) Your conclusion should be followed by supporting evidence including, but
not necessarily limited to the following:
a. The names of the plates involved,
b. The names of and location relative to surface features and landforms,
c. The number of associated earthquakes and summaries of their 3-D spatial distribution
relative to the boundary (e.g. Are they on both sides of the boundary or just one?
Which side are they on? What magnitude? How do the depths trend?),
d. Charts/graphs summarizing the frequency, range, and distribution of earthquake
depths and magnitudes, percentage of associated earthquakes that are shallow,
intermediate, and deep,
e. For this example case, you would be sure to show clearly (in your oblique views
slides 4 and 5) that depth increases with distance from the boundary.
SLIDE 6: Summary of Data and Conclusion
6. On the final slide, provide a list of sources and references. I dont care which format you use,
just be clear and consistent.
SLIDE 7: Sources and References
7. Name and save your file FINAL PROJECT PERIOD N LASTFIRST1 LASTFIRST 2
8. Submit your slideshows here:
https://drive.google.com/a/fcpsschools.net/folderview?
id=0B6wgdemn7BCVfkcyX2xKaEl4dW1WMVRsZ0ExZTVuSW5XVDFETFpLTVZsenFD
eks5b1doOTQ&usp=sharing
Final Note: Feel free to be creative as you format your presentation just be sure not
clutter your slides to the extent that their function is compromised.