Engineering features of the San Fernando earthquake of February 9, 1971

Abstract

Because of its consequences, the San Fernando earthquake was a major earthquake from the engineering point of view, even though it was only a moderate shock in seismological terms. As a result of the many effects of the earthquake, a large number of detailed studies and reports will be forthcoming from a wide variety of sources, and the papers collected in this volume are only preliminary studies of some of the more important and interesting engineering features of the earthquake. The papers were prepared by staff and students working in earthquake engineering within the Division of Engineering and Applied Science at the California Institute of Technology. The timely financial support of the Engineering Division of the National Science Foundation and the Earthquake Research Affiliates of the California Institute of Technology in conducting the research and preparing this report is gratefully acknowledged.