Japan Earthquake Reconnaissance in Structural Engineering

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9520108 Moehle On the morning of 17 January 1995, a strong earthquake shook the central portion of Japan. At this time, the details of the effects of the earthquake are unclear. However, the death toll has risen above 5000, and there is evidence of widespread disruption of the civil infrastructure, including damage and collapse of thousands of engineered structures. Both geotechnical and structural issues appear to have contributed to the observed damage. While there are many differences between the conditions in Japan and those in the United States, it is clear that this tragic event holds many lessons for U.S. construction practices. Many of the lessons will be lost unless efforts are made as soon as possible to gather perishable data. This project provides support through NSF's SGER award mechanism to assemble a team of researchers from the United States to travel to the epicentral region, gather data, prepare a written report, and coordinate with other groups from the United States having similar missions. The team focus on the following two specific areas: (a) Building Structures, and (b) Bridge Structures A technical report on the reconnaissance team's findings will be prepared and distributed.