research overview
- Vera Schulte-Pelkum uses seismic methods to image structure and deformation processes in the Earth's crust and mantle, with a focus on linking laboratory and field data to seismic interpretation.
- Contact Info
Schulte-Pelkum, Vera
Positions
- Research Associate, Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences (CIRES)
- Assoc Research Professor, Geological Sciences
Research Areas
Research
keywords
- seismic anisotropy, structural imaging, convergent boundaries, receiver functions, seismotectonics, array processing, seismic noise wavefield, lithosphere, basin resonance, near-surface characterization for seismic hazard, volcanic systems imaging
Publications
selected publications
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chapter
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Seismicity and Anisotropic Imaging Reveal an Active Detachment Beneath the Northern Alaska Range Foothills.
Geophysical Monograph Series.
575-587.
2024
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Passive Source Seismology of the Rocky Mountain Region.
Geophysical Monograph Series.
309-315.
2005
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Seismicity and Anisotropic Imaging Reveal an Active Detachment Beneath the Northern Alaska Range Foothills.
Geophysical Monograph Series.
575-587.
2024
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conference proceeding
- Transcrustal magmatic fabrics under Alaska volcanoes from harmonic receiver functions (invited) 2022
- Accumulation of partial melt beneath the Cascadia forearc constrained by teleseismic S reflections and P receiver functions. Eos. 2021
- Constraints on Plate Boundary Mechanics from a Comparison of Mantle and Crustal Anisotropy at Continental Transform Faults. Eos. 2021
- Great Unsolved Questions in Tectonophysics: How do Lithospheric Layers and Asthenosphere Interact, and What are Their Rheological Properties as a Function of Depth? (Invited). Eos. 2021
- Great Unsolved Questions in Tectonophysics: What are the transient rheologies of Earth’s lithosphere over the spectrum of deformation timescales, from milliseconds to tens of millions of years? (Invited). Eos. 2021
- Great Unsolved Questions in Tectonophysics: What causes some faults to slip in major earthquakes, while others appear to creep and/or undergo episodic slow slip? (Invited). Eos. 2021
- Great Unsolved Questions in Tectonophysics: What is the Absolute Stress in the Lithosphere and Below? (Invited). Eos. 2021
- Great Unsolved Questions in Tectonophysics: What physics governs fault networks? Can models make non-retrospective predictions that can be supported and/or falsified with near-future observations? (Invited). Eos. 2021
- Great unsolved questions in Tectonophysics: What is the role of inelastic off-fault deformation in the fault life cycle? (Invited). Eos. 2021
- Imaging of Transcrustal Magmatic Oriented Structures and Fabric at Alaskan Volcanoes Using Receiver Function and Surface Wave Anisotropy. Eos. 2021
- Past and Present Deformation along the San Andreas from Microseismicity, Geodesy, and Seismological Constraints. Eos. 2021
- Seismic Anisotropy of Mafic Blueschists: Constraints from Exhumed Glaucophane-Rich Blueschists with Implications for the Subduction Interface. Eos. 2021
- Shallow crustal structure of Southern California by jointly inverting surface wave phase velocity, Rayleigh wave ellipticity, and Receiver Functions. Eos. 2021
- Synthesis of fault geometry, seismicity, and receiver function deep structural fabric to constrain Community Fault (CFM) and Rheology (CRM) Models 2021
- Tectonic inheritance during plate boundary evolution in southern California constrained from seismic anisotropy 2021
- Mapping the deformations patterns of the Grenville 1x2 degree quadrangle in the southern Appalachians' surface in comparison to seismic anisotropy to predict subsurface dipping faults 2021
- East-dipping seismically anisotropic foliation above the Appalachian decollement inferred from azimuthally varying Ps receiver functions at SESAME stations in the Blue Ridge and Piedmont terranes: Implications for Alleghanian deformation patterns in the Appalachian orogen 2021
- Continuity Between Surface and Deep Lithospheric Deformational Grain for the Northern Cordillera Using Transportable Array Receiver Functions. Eos. 2020
- Crustal structure and its tectonic implications to the Banda Arc-Australian continent collision revealed by teleseismic receiver functions. Eos. 2020
- Inherited tectonic grain in southern California inferred from receiver functions and seismicity and possible effects on present-day deformation 2020
- Lowering the Access Threshold to 3-dimensional Visualization and Programming Benchmarks via an Interactive Web Tool: Tensor Visualization Guide (TVguide) for Elasticity Tensor and Seismic Anisotropy Analysis. Eos. 2020
- Newly digitized structural data from the southern Appalachians and comparisons to subsurface anisotropy from seismic stations. Eos. 2020
- Anisotropic strength of fault zones suggested from geodesy and seismic imaging: Example from the Main Himalayan Thrust 2020
- Joint MCMC Inversion of Rayleigh Wave Phase Velocity, Ellipticity, and Receiver Functions: Southern California Shear Velocity Model Expanding to the Shallower and Deeper Crust 2020
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Crustal Deformation in Southern California Constrained by Radial Anisotropy From Ambient Noise Adjoint Tomography.
Geophysical Research Letters.
2020
- (invited) Deep Structure of the Main Himalayan Thrust and Indian Mantle From Structural Imaging, Geodetic Modeling, and Seismicity. Eos. 2019
- (invited) Seismic observations of processes in collisional continental lithosphere: Rheological changes, phase changes, and deformation. Eos. 2019
- S53E-0500 - Shear Velocity Model of Alaska via Joint Inversion of Rayleigh Wave Ellipticity, Phase Velocities, and Receiver Functions across the USArray (Invited). Eos. 2019
- Tectonic inheritance via the influence of crustal composition and deformation fabric on deformation response and the geometry of faults and anisotropic shear zones in California 2019
- Analysis and removal of sediment signal in receiver functions 2019
- LINKING LITHOLOGY, STRUCTURE, AND ROCK PROPERTIES TO OBSERVED SEISMIC ANISOTROPY IN COLORADO ROCKY MOUNTAIN CRUST. GSA Today. 2019
- T41E-0324 Crustal structure of the Nepalese Himalaya revealed by receiver functions and Rayleigh wave dispersion. Eos. 2019
- Analysis and removal of sediment signal in receiver functions 2019
- Deformation and structural evolution of the deep crust and lithosphere from Earthscope seismic data and geological ground truth 2019
- A voyage into central Colorado crust: Linking seismic anisotropy and surface geology 2018
- Mapping modification of deep crustal structure in the Wyoming province using xenoliths, crystalline basement exposures, and receiver functions 2018
- Oblique view through Big Sky orogenic crust in southwestern Montana and potential relations to geophysical structure of northern Wyoming cratonic margin 2018
- Contrasts in lower crustal structure and evolution between the northern and southern Rocky Mountains from xenoliths and seismic data 2016
- Expression of Lithospheric Shear Zones in Rock Elasticity Tensors and in Anisotropic Receiver Functions and Inferences on the Roots of Faults and Lower Crustal Deformation 2016
- Proterozoic assembly signature and its overprint in lower crustal seismic velocity structure across North America 2016
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journal article
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Layered Seismic Anisotropy and Tectonics of the Anatolian Plate.
Geophysical Research Letters.
2026
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Waveform Effects on Shear Wave Splitting Near Fault Zones.
Journal of Geophysical Research (JGR): Solid Earth.
2025
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Lithospheric Foundering in Progress Imaged Under an Extinct Continental Arc.
Geophysical Research Letters.
2024
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Fault-Dike-Magma Interactions Inferred from Transcrustal Conical Structures under Akutan Volcano.
Seismological Research Letters.
2663-2673.
2024
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Weak, Vertically Stronger Main Himalayan Thrust in the India-Asia Collision.
Geophysical Research Letters.
2024
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Seismic Anisotropy of Mafic Blueschists: EBSD-Based Constraints From the Exhumed Rock Record.
Journal of Geophysical Research (JGR): Solid Earth.
2024
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Confronting Solid-State Shear Bias: Magmatic Fabric Contribution to Crustal Seismic Anisotropy.
Geophysical Research Letters.
2023
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Constraining the crustal composition of the continental US using seismic observables.
Geological Society of America Bulletin.
2038-2056.
2022
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Don't judge an orogen by its cover: Kinematics of the Appalachian decollement from seismic anisotropy.
Geology.
1306-1311.
2022
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Complex Patterns of Past and Ongoing Crustal Deformations in Southern California Revealed by Seismic Azimuthal Anisotropy.
Geophysical Research Letters.
2022
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Tectonic Fabric in the Banda Arc-Australian Continent Collisional Zone Imaged by Teleseismic Receiver Functions.
Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems.
2022
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From Crystals to Crustal-Scale Seismic Anisotropy: Bridging the Gap Between Rocks and Seismic Studies With Digital Geologic Map Data in Colorado.
Tectonics.
2022
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Tectonic Inheritance During Plate Boundary Evolution in Southern California Constrained From Seismic Anisotropy.
Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems.
2021
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The competing effects of olivine and orthopyroxene CPO on seismic anisotropy.
Tectonophysics.
2021
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Tectonic inheritance during plate boundary evolution in southern California constrained from seismic anisotropy
2021
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Shallow Crustal Shear Velocity and Vp/Vs Across Southern California: Joint Inversion of Short-Period Rayleigh Wave Ellipticity, Phase Velocity, and Teleseismic Receiver Functions.
Geophysical Research Letters.
2021
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Imaging the Tectonic Grain of the Northern Cordillera Orogen Using Transportable Array Receiver Functions.
Seismological Research Letters.
3086-3105.
2020
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Tectonic Inheritance With Dipping Faults and Deformation Fabric in the Brittle and Ductile Southern California Crust.
Journal of Geophysical Research (JGR): Solid Earth.
2020
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Tectonic inheritance from deformation fabric in the brittle and ductile Southern California crust
2020
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Shear Velocity Model of Alaska Via Joint Inversion of Rayleigh Wave Ellipticity, Phase Velocities, and Receiver Functions Across the Alaska Transportable Array.
Journal of Geophysical Research (JGR): Solid Earth.
2020
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Deep Crustal Faults, Shear Zones, and Magmatism in the Eastern Cordillera of Colombia: Growth of a Plateau From Teleseismic Receiver Function and Geochemical Mio-Pliocene Volcanism Constraints.
Journal of Geophysical Research (JGR): Solid Earth.
9833-9851.
2019
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Mantle earthquakes in the Himalayan collision zone.
Geology.
815-819.
2019
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Matched Field Processing of Three-Component Seismic Array Data Applied to Rayleigh and Love Microseisms.
Journal of Geophysical Research (JGR): Solid Earth.
6871-6889.
2018
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Ten kilometer vertical Moho offset and shallow velocity contrast along the Denali fault zone from double-difference tomography, receiver functions, and fault zone head waves.
Tectonophysics.
56-69.
2017
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Source modeling of the 2015 Mw 7.8 Nepal (Gorkha) earthquake sequence: Implications for geodynamics and earthquake hazards.
Tectonophysics.
21-30.
2017
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Characteristics of deep crustal seismic anisotropy from a compilation of rock elasticity tensors and their expression in receiver functions.
Tectonics.
1835-1857.
2017
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The distribution and composition of high-velocity lower crust across the continental US: Comparison of seismic and xenolith data and implications for lithospheric dynamics and history.
Tectonics.
1455-1496.
2017
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Imaging Faults and Shear Zones Using Receiver Functions.
Pure and Applied Geophysics.
2967-2991.
2014
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A method for mapping crustal deformation and anisotropy with receiver functions and first results from USArray.
Earth and Planetary Science Letters.
221-233.
2014
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Origins of topography in the western US: Mapping crustal and upper mantle density variations using a uniform seismic velocity model.
Journal of Geophysical Research (JGR): Solid Earth.
2375-2396.
2014
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Crustal and uppermost mantle structure in the central US encompassing the Midcontinent Rift.
Journal of Geophysical Research (JGR): Solid Earth.
4325-4344.
2013
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Sequential H-κ Stacking to Obtain Accurate Crustal Thicknesses beneath Sedimentary Basins.
Bulletin of the Seismological Society of America.
2142-2150.
2013
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Joint inversion of surface wave dispersion and receiver functions: a Bayesian Monte-Carlo approach.
Geophysical Journal International.
807-836.
2013
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A 3-D model of the crust and uppermost mantle beneath the Central and Western US by joint inversion of receiver functions and surface wave dispersion.
Journal of Geophysical Research (JGR): Solid Earth.
262-276.
2013
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Apparent Vertical Moho Offsets under Continental Strike-Slip Faults from Lithology Contrasts in the Seismogenic Crust.
Bulletin of the Seismological Society of America.
2757-2763.
2012
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Seismic structure and lithospheric rheology from deep crustal xenoliths, central Montana, USA.
Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems.
2012
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Roles of quartz and mica in seismic anisotropy of mylonites.
Geophysical Journal International.
1123-1134.
2012
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Differential motion between upper crust and lithospheric mantle in the central Basin and Range.
Nature Geoscience.
619-623.
2011
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Estimating the Rayleigh-wave impulse response between seismic stations with the cross terms of the Green tensor.
Geophysical Research Letters.
2011
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TECTONICS Draining Nevada.
Nature Geoscience.
381-382.
2009
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Seismicity and one-dimensional velocity structure of the Himalayan collision zone: Earthquakes in the crust and upper mantle.
Journal of Geophysical Research (JGR): Solid Earth.
2006
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Statistical properties of seismic anisotropy predicted by upper mantle geodynamic models.
Journal of Geophysical Research (JGR): Solid Earth.
2006
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Mantle flow under the western United States from shear wave splitting.
Earth and Planetary Science Letters.
235-251.
2006
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Imaging the Indian subcontinent beneath the Himalaya.
Nature.
1222-1225.
2005
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Strong directivity of ocean-generated seismic noise - art. no. Q03004.
Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems.
2004
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A synthesis of seismic P and S anisotropy.
Geophysical Journal International.
166-178.
2003
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Large teleseismic P wavefront deflections observed with broadband arrays.
Bulletin of the Seismological Society of America.
747-756.
2003
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Upper mantle anisotropy from long-period P polarization.
Journal of Geophysical Research (JGR): Solid Earth.
21917-21934.
2001
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Layered Seismic Anisotropy and Tectonics of the Anatolian Plate.
Geophysical Research Letters.
2026
Teaching
courses taught
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GEOL 1010 - Exploring Earth
Primary Instructor - Summer 2020 / Spring 2021
Introductory geology for majors and non-majors. Studies Earth, its materials, its characteristics, its dynamic processes, and how it relates to people. Separate lab (ERTH 1030) is recommended. Formerly GEOL 1010. Degree credit not granted for this class and ERTH 1012. -
GEOL 3330 - Principles of Geophysics
Primary Instructor - Spring 2020 / Spring 2022 / Spring 2024
Provides an introduction to fundamental geophysics including seismology, geomagnetism, gravity, and electromagnetic methods with applications to plate tectonics and exploration of the subsurface. Formerly GEOL 3320 and GEOL 4130. -
GEOL 4714 - Field Geophysics
Primary Instructor - Fall 2021
Applies geophysical field techniques and data interpretation to studying geological and engineering problems. Fieldwork includes seismic, gravity, magnetic, and electrical measurements. Formerly GEOL 4714. -
GEOL 5714 - Field Geophysics
Primary Instructor - Fall 2021
Applies geophysical field techniques and data interpretation to studying geological and engineering problems. Fieldwork includes seismic, gravity, magnetic and electrical measurements. Department enforced prerequisite: restricted to graduate students only and GEOL 2001 or GEOL 2700 and MATH 1300 and PHYS 1110. May be repeated up to 6 total credit hours.
Background
education and training
- Ph.D., University of California-San Diego 2001
- M.S., Ruhr University Boschum (Germany) 1994
- B.S., Ruhr University Boschum (Germany) 1992
International Activities
geographic focus
- Australia Country