Alan Kafka

Education:

• Ph.D. (Geophysics), Stony Brook University (1980)

• M.S. (Applied Mathematics), Stony Brook University (1973)

• B.A. (Mathematics), New York University (1971)

Professional Experience:

• Since 1983, I have been teaching Earth and Environmental Sciences at Boston College and conducting research at BC's Weston Observatory. My work spans the intersection of geophysics, earthquake science, environmental systems, and citizen science for the greater good. I study earthquakes and seismological processes in many regions of planet Earth, and have long been obsessed with the enigma of why earthquakes occur in the Eastern U.S., deep in the interior of the North American plate. I am inspired by and active in promoting today’s new technologies that drive emerging opportunities for cooperation among seismologists, citizen scientists, and students of all backgrounds and ages around the world. My current home base is the Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences at Boston College.

• Associate Professor, Earth and Environmental Sciences, Boston College (1989 - present)

• Affiliated Faculty, Environmental Studies Program, Boston College (2019 - present)

• Director, Weston Observatory, Boston College (2013 - 2023)

• Founder and Facilitator, Boston College Educational Seismology Project (2004 - present)

• Department Chair, Geology and Geophysics, Boston College (2001-2007)

• Director of Undergraduate Studies, Earth and Environmental Sciences, Boston College (2011 - 2016)

• Associate Director, Weston Observatory, Boston College (2004 - 2013)

• Adjunct Associate Professor, Geology and Geophysics, Boston College (1987-1989)

• National Research Council Associate, AFGL, Hanscom AFB, MA (1985-1986)

• Assistant Professor, Geology and Geophysics, Boston College (1983-1984)

• Research Associate, Lamont-Doherty Geological Observatory, Columbia University (1979-1982)

• Adjunct Assistant Professor, Earth and Planetary Sciences, City College of New York (1982)

• Instructor, Mathematics, Suffolk County Community College, Selden, NY (1974-1975)

Key Publications:

Kafka, A.L., J.J. Pulli, and K.L. McLaughlin (2024). Analysis of Raspberry Shake Recordings of the April 5, 2024 New Jersey Earthquake: Global Raspberry Shake Network, Promotes Opportunities for Research and Community Engagement, Poster, Eastern Section Meeting, Seismological Society of America, Atlanta, GA, October 21-22, 2024. Click here for poster.

Kafka, A.L. (2007). Does Seismicity Delineate Zones Where Future Large Earthquakes Will Occur in Intraplate Environments?, In Continental Intraplate Earthquakes: Science, Hazard, and Policy Issues, Geological Society of America volume, Geological Society of America Special Paper 425, Edited by S. Stein and S. Mazzotti, 3548, doi: 10.1130/2007.2425(03).

Kafka, A.L. and J.E. Ebel (2011). Proximity to Past Earthquakes as a Least Astonishing Hypothesis for Forecasting Locations of Future Earthquakes, Bulletin of the Seismological Society of America, 101(4), August 2011, doi: doi: 10.1785/0120090164.

Kafka, A.L., E.A. Schlesinger-Miller and N.L. Barstow (1985). Earthquake Activity in the Greater New York City Area: Magnitudes, Seismicity and Geologic Structures, Bulletin of the Seismological Society of America, 75(5), 1285-1300.

Kafka, A.L. and P.E. Miller (1996). Seismicity in the Area Surrounding Two Mesozoic Rift Basins in the Northeastern United States, Seismological Research Letters, 67(3), 69-86.

Kafka, A.L. (2000). Public Misconceptions About Faults and Earthquakes in the Eastern United States: Is it Our Own Fault?, Seismological Research Letters, 71(3), 311-312.

Kafka, A.L. (1990). Rg as a Depth Discriminant for Earthquakes and Explosions: A Case Study in New England, Bulletin of the Seismological Society of America, 80(2), 373-394.

Kafka, A. L., and E.C. Reiter (1987). Dispersion of Rg Waves in Southeastern Maine: Evidence for Lateral Anisotropy in the Shallow Crust, Bulletin of the Seismological Society of America, 77(3), 925-941.

Lecocq, T., et al. (2020), with a global team of 76 coauthors, including A.L. Kafka, Global Quieting of High-Frequency Seismic Noise Due to COVID-19 Pandemic Lockdown Measures, Science, 10.1126/science.abd2438, Link to paper. 

Kafka, A.L. and K. Rasmusson (2003). Using the AS1 Seismograph for Laboratory Exercises in an Introductory Geophysics Course: Turning Seismic Moments Into Teachable Moments, Seismological Research Letters, 74(5), 618-624. Link to paper.

Svennevig, K., et al., with 68 coauthors from around the world, including A.L. Kafka (2024). A Rockslide-Generated Tsunami in a Greenland Fjord Rang the Earth for 9 Days, Science,Vol 385, Issue 6714, p. 1196-1205, DOI: 10.1126/science.adm9247.

Baruah, S., et al., with 19 coauthors from around the world, including A.L. Kafka (2024). Seismic Monitoring of 2020 Baghjan Oil-Well Blowout Incident in Assam India, Nature Scientific Reports, 14, 24108, DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-74428-y.

Kafka, A.L., and D.J. Weidner (1981). Earthquake Focal Mechanisms and Tectonic Processes Along the Southern Boundary of the Caribbean plate, Journal of Geophysical Research, 86(B4), 2877-2888.

Other Selected Abstracts, Posters, and Publications:

Pulli, J.J, and A.L. Kafka, and K.L. McLaughlin (2024). Raspberry Shake Recordings of the April 5, 2024 New Jersey Earthquake: Growing Citizen Science Network Offers Opportunities for Community Engagement and Research, Poster, AGU24 Meeting of American Geophysical Union, Washington, DC, December 9-13, 2024. Click here for poster.

Gogoi, K., S. Baruah, N. Dutta, T. Chetia, and A.L. Kafka (2024). An Unusual Tornado Strikes Again in Assam: Is it Linked to Climate Change?, Opinion Article in Current Science, Vol. 127, No. 10, 1148-1149, November 25, 2024.

Velasco, A.A., J. Weidner, M.S. Karplus, S.L Bilek, C. Bolton Valencius, M. Brudzinski, D. Chandrsekhar, J.E. Ebel, T.E. Hobbs, J.M. Hurtado Jr, S.C Jaume, E. Jones, A.L Kafka, Y. Lin, A- M. Nunez, K.L Pankow, Z. Peng, A. Savvaidis, I. Tien, and E.A. Vanacore (2023). Center for Collective Impact in Earthquake Science (C-CIES), Annual Meeting, Seismological Society of America, San Juan, PR, April, 2023.

Pulli, J.J., and A.L. Kafka, (2023). Seismo-Acoustic Studies Along the US “Northeast Corridor” With Raspberry Shakes & Booms: Utilizing Low-Cost Sensors for Citizen Seismology and Basic Research, Poster, Eastern Section Meeting, Seismological Society of America, SMU, Dallas, TX, October 22-24, 2023

Kafka, A.L., J.J. Pulli, K.R. Fink, C. Stapels, K. Cannon, D. McCasland, K. McLaughlin, R. Block, Stephen R. McNutt, J. N. Kafka, M. J. Sharkey (2022). That's the way the Raspberry Shakes: 2022 update on the intriguing variety of things we record with Shakes and Booms, (Poster), Eastern Section Meeting, Seismological Society of America, Tampa, FL, October 23-25, 2022.

Kafka, A.L., and J.J. Pulli (2020), The COVID-19 Seismic Noise Quiet as Seen by Two Raspberry Shake Seismographs Located at Boston College, Fall 2020 Meeting of American Geophysical Union, "Online Everywhere", December 1-17, 2020, Link to Abstract.

Kafka, A.L. (2020), Seismic Moments as Teachaable Moments: Opportunities for Integrating Basic Research, Science Education, and Citizen Science, 2020 Annual Meeting of Geological Society of America , "GSA 2020 Connects Online", October 26-30, 2020, Link to Abstract.

Pulli, J.J., and A.L. Kafka (2020), Decrease in High-Frequency Background Seismic Noise after the COVID-19 Lockdown at a Suburban Site Outside Washington DC, Fall 2020 Meeting of American Geophysical Union, "Online Everywhere", December 1-17, 2020, Link to Abstract.

Kafka, A.L., and K.R. Fink (2019). Raspberry Shake, EQ1, and Research-Grade Seismographs: Pros and Cons of Different Types of Seismographs for Education, Citizen Science, and Earthquake Monitoring in New England and Texas, Eastern Section Meeting, Seismological Society of America, Columbus, OH, November 3-5, 2019 (Abstract), Click here for poster.

Pulli, J.J, and A. L. Kafka (2019). Coherent Processing of Raspberry Shake Data from the Washington D.C. and Boston Areas, Eastern Section Meeting, Seismological Society of America, Eastern Section Meeting, Seismological Society of America, Columbus, OH, November 3-5, 2019 (Abstract).

Fink, K.R, and A. L. Kafka (2019). Cultivating Citizen Scientists with Seismic Monitoring in Texas and New England Using an Affordable Seismograph, 2019 Annual Meeting of the Society of Exploration Geophysicists, San Antonio, TX, September, 15-20, 2019, (Extended Abstract/Conference Paper). Click here for poster.

Chambless, H.E., and A. L. Kafka (2018). Cellular Seismology Predictability as a Measure of Association Between Wastewater Injection and Earthquakes: A 2018 Update, Eastern Section Meeting, Seismological Society of America, Niagara Falls, ON, June 10-14, 2018 (Abstract), Click here for poster.

Sargsyan, L., N.E. Toghramadjian, and A.L. Kafka (2018). Cellular Seismology Analysis of Reservoir-Triggered Seismicity Associated with Armenian Dams, Bulletin of the Seismological Society of America, 1081(5B), 3126-3140, doi: 101785/0120180014.

Fink, K.R., A.L. Kafka, A.M. Moulis, and M.C. Bibeau (2018). TX-ESP and BC-ESP: A Collaborative Educational Seismology Project in Texas and New England, American Geophysical Union, Washington, DC, December 14, 2018 (Abstract), Click here for poster.

Kafka, A.L., and H.E. Chambless (2018). Cellular Seismology Predictability as a Measure of Association Between Wastewater Injection and Earthquakes: The Story Behind the Story, Eastern Section Meeting, Seismological Society of America, Niagara Falls, ON, June 10-14, 2018 (Abstract), Click here for poster.

Kafka, A.L., and H.E. Chambless (2017). Cellular Seismology Predictability as a Measure of Association Between Wastewater Injection and Earthquakes, Eastern Section Meeting, Seismological Society of America, Norman, OK, October 8-10, 2017 (Abstract).

Chambless, H.E., and A. L. Kafka (2017). Modified Cellular Seismology Exploration of Spatial and Temporal Patterns of Injection Wells and Earthquakes in Oklahoma, Eastern Section Meeting, Seismological Society of America, Norman, OK, October 8-10, 2017 (Abstract).

Ebel, J.E., O. Fadugba, A.M. Moulis, N. Dahal, and A.L. Kafka (2017). Operational Earthquake Forecasting of Aftershocks for New England, Annual Meeting, Seismological Society of America, Denver, CO, April 18-20, 2017 (Abstract).

Chambless, H.E., and A. L. Kafka (2016). Spatiotemporal Analysis of Injection-Induced Earthquakes in Oklahoma and Surrounding Areas, Eastern Section Meeting, Seismological Society of America, Reston, VA, October 23-26, 2016 (Abstract).

Kafka, A.L., A.M. Moulis, K.R. Fink, and H.E. Chambless (2016). Can You Show Us the Richter Scale?: The Challenge of Teaching About Magnitude With Educational Seismographs, Eastern Section Meeting, Seismological Society of America, Reston, VA, October 23-26, 2016 (Abstract).

Kafka, A.L., and M. Barnett (2015). A Police Chief, a Mayor, and a Seismologist Walk Into a Town Hall Meeting: Responding to Citizens' Concerns About Earthquakes, Eastern Section Meeting, Seismological Society of America, University of Memphis, Memphis, TN, October 15, 2015 (Abstract).

Chambless, H.E., and A.L. Kafka (2015). Injection Induced Seismicity, Hydraulic Fracturing Operations, and Wastewater Injection Wells in Oklahoma and California, Eastern Section Meeting, Seismological Society of America, University of Memphis, Memphis, TN, October 15, 2015 (Abstract).

Bravo, T.K., and A. L. Kafka (2015). Record and Analyze Seismic Data in the Classroom with Free Iris Software!, 2015 Conference of the National Science Teachers Association, Chicago, IL, March 15, 2015 (Abstract).

Kafka, A.L., A.J. Kotowski, O. Ayandele, and A. Ferenczi (2014). Cellular Seismology: Is Past Seismicity a Good Basis for Seismic Source Characterization of the Central and Eastern U.S.?, Eastern Section Meeting, Seismological Society of America, College of Charleston, Charleston, SC, November 2-4, 2014 (Abstract).

Kafka, A.L. (2013). New Opportunities for Exploring Global and Regional Earthquakes in the Classroom and Beyond, Eastern Section Meeting, Seismological Society of America, Charlevoix, Quebec, Canada, October 6-8, 2013 (Abstract).

Cinella, J.R., and A.L. Kafka (2012). Cellular Seismology Investigation of the Caribbean Plate, Eastern Section Meeting, Seismological Society of America, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, VA, October 29, 2012 (Abstract).

Wolin, E, S. Stein, F. Pazzaglia, A. Meltzer, A.L. Kafka, and C. Berti (2012). Mineral Virginia Earthquake Illustrates Seismicity of a Passive-Aggressive Margin, Geophysical Research Letters, 39(L02305), doi: 10.1029/2011GL050310.

Chambers, D.W., J.A. Baglivo, J.E. Ebel, and A.L. Kafka (2011). Earthquake Forecasting Using Hidden Markov Models, Pure and Applied Geophysics, doi: 10.1.1007/s00024-011-0315-1.

Kafka, A.L. (2011). Investigation of Cellular Seismology as a Basis for Seismic Source Characterization of the Central and Eastern United States, Eastern Section Meeting, Seismological Society of America, Little Rock, AR, October 17, 2011 (Abstract).

Fisher, S.W.,and A.L. Kafka (2011). Effects of Spatial Scale and Magnitude on Cellular Seismology Forecasts in the New Madrid Seismic Zone,Eastern Section Meeting, Seismological Society of America, Little Rock, AR, October 17, 2011 (Abstract).

Kafka, A.L., A. Frappier, and N.P. Snyder (2011). Natural Hazards, Environmental Degradation, and the Urbanization of Planet Earth: Perspectives on the Ethical Challenges Geoscientists Face in an Uncertain World, Proceedings of the International Conference on Ethics and Sustainability of the Earth, Boston College, February 2628, 2009.

Kafka, A.L. (2010). Cellular Seismology and Seismic Source Characterization of the Central and Eastern United States, Eastern Section Meeting, Seismological Society of America, Boston College, October 18, 2010 (Abstract).

Kafka, A.L., and J.E. Ebel (2007). Exaggerated Claims About Earthquake Predictions, EOS, Transactions of the American Geophysical Union, 88(1), 1,6.

Ebel, J.E., D.W. Chambers, A.L. Kafka, and J.A. Baglivo (2007). Non-poissonian Earthquake Clustering and Hidden Markov Model as Bases for Earthquake Forecasting in California, Seismological Research Letters, 77(1), 47-55.

Kafka, A.L., J.E. Ebel, M. Barnett, A. Macherides Moulis, L. Campbell, and S.E. Gordon (2006). Classroom Seismographs and the Challenge of Encouraging a Culture of Scientific Inquiry in K12 Schools, Seismological Research Letters, 77(6), 74-86.

Barnett, M., A.L. Kafka, A. Pfitzner, and E. Syzmanski (2005). The Living Earth: Inviting Students Into the World of Scientific Research Through Seismology, Journal of College Science Teaching, 34(6), 50-54.

Kafka, A.L. (2005). The Value of Dialogue Between Scientists and Theologians: A Geophysicist's Perspective, In The Dialogue Between Science and Religion: What We Have Learned from One Another, P. Byrne, Editor, University of Scranton Press, 143-156.

Kafka, A.L. (2002). Statistical Analysis of the Hypothesis That Seismicity Delineates Areas Where Future Large Earthquakes are Likely to Occur in the Central and Eastern United States, Seismological Research Letters, 73(6), 990-1001.

Ebel, J.E. and A.L. Kafka (2002). A Non-Poissonian Element in the Seismicity of the Northeastern United States, Bulletin of the Seismological Society of America, 92(5), 2040-2045.

Kafka, A.L. (2001). Not Always on Solid ground: Earthquake Causes in Northeast Still a Mystery to Seismologists, Natural New England Magazine, 5, 53-57.

Kafka, A.L. and S.Z. Levin (2000). Does the Spatial Distribution of Smaller Earthquakes Delineate Areas Where Larger Earthquakes are Likely to Occur?, Bulletin of the Seismological Society of America, 90(3), 724-738.

Kafka, A.L. (1999). Dr. Quake Goes to High School, Seismological Research Letters, 70(2), 179-182.

Kafka, A.L., and E.K. Driscoll (1999). Earthquakes in the Area Surrounding the Quabbin Reservoir in Central Massachusetts, Seismological Research Letters, 70(4), 446-460.

Ebel, J.E. and A.L. Kafka (1999). A Monte Carlo Approach to Seismic Hazard Analysis, Bulletin of the Seismological Society of America, 89(4), 854-866.

Kafka, A.L. and Walcott, J.R. (1998). How Well Does the Spatial Distribution of Smaller Earthquakes Forecast the Locations of Larger Earthquakes in the Northeastern United States?, Seismological Research Letters, 69(5), 428-439.

Ebel, J.E., A.R. Lazarewicz, A.L. Kafka (1997). A Geographic Information System Approach to Investigating the Correlation of Seismicity with Tectonic Features in the Central and Eastern United States, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Report NUREG/CR-6573.

Ebel, J.E. and A.L. Kafka (1991). Earthquake Activity in the Northeastern United States, in Decade of North American Geology, vol. GSMV-1, Neotectonics of North America, D.B. Slemmons, E.R. Engdahl, D. Blackwell, D. Schwartz and M. Zoback, Editors, Chapter 15, 277-290, 1991.

Saikia, C.K., A.L. Kafka, S.C. Gnewuch, and J.M. McTigue (1990). Shear Wave Velocity and Attenuation Structure of the Shallow Crust in Southeastern New England from Dispersion of Rg Waves, Journal of Geophysical Research, 95(B6), 8527-8541.

Kafka, A.L., M.A. Winslow and N.L. Barstow (1989). Earthquake Activity in the Greater New York City Area: A Faultfinder's Guide, in Field Trip Guidebook, 61st Annual Meeting, N.Y. State Geological Association, D. Weiss, ed., p. 177-205, 1989.

Nishenko, S.P., and A. L. Kafka (1982). Earthquake Focal Mechanisms and the Intraplate Setting of the Bermuda Rise, Journal of Geophysical Research, 87(B5), 3929-3941.

Kafka, A.L., and D.J. Weidner (1979). The Focal Mechanisms and Depths of Small Earthquakes as Determined from Rayleigh Wave Radiation Patterns, Bulletin of the Seismological Society of America, 69(5), 1379-1390.