Multimedia Gallery - A 9-meter geotechnical centrifuge at UC Davis can simulate high-pressure underground during a quake.

Photo of a 9-meter geotechnical centrifuge arm.

September 23, 2015

A 9-meter geotechnical centrifuge at UC Davis can simulate high-pressure underground during a quake.

The 9-meter geotechnical centrifuge at the University of California, Davis--part of the NSF Natural Hazards Engineering Research Infrastructure--can simulate the high pressures found deep in the ground within small-scale models while hydraulic actuators simulate earthquakes. Hundreds of sensors measure the response of the soil and model structures.

Here, the model seen on the centrifuge arm is part of the NSF project "NEESR: Seismic Response of Shallow Underground Structures in Dense Urban Environments" (CMMI-1134968).

Credit: Center for Geotechnical Modeling, UC Davis

Images credited to the National Science Foundation, a federal agency, are in the public domain. The images were created by employees of the United States Government as part of their official duties or prepared by contractors as "works for hire" for NSF. You may freely use NSF-credited images and, at your discretion, credit NSF with a "Courtesy: National Science Foundation" notation.

Additional information about general usage can be found in Conditions.

Also Available:
Download the high-resolution PNG version of the image. (1.7 MB)

Use your mouse to right-click (Mac users may need to Ctrl-click) the link above and choose the option that will save the file or target to your computer.