Sensing the ups and downs of Las Vegas: InSAR reveals structural control of land subsidence and aquifer-system deformation

Research Article| June 01, 1999 Sensing the ups and downs of Las Vegas: InSAR reveals structural control of land subsidence and aquifer-system deformation Falk Amelung; Falk Amelung 1Department of Geophysics, Stanford University, Stanford, California 94305, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Devin L. Galloway; Devin L. Galloway 2U.S. Geological Survey, Sacramento, California 95819, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar John W. Bell; John W. Bell 3Nevada Bureau of Mines and Geology, University of Nevada, Reno, Nevada 89557, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Howard A. Zebker; Howard A. Zebker 1Department of Geophysics, Stanford University, Stanford, California 94305, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Randell J. Laczniak Randell J. Laczniak 4U.S. Geological Survey, Las Vegas, Nevada 89119, USA Search for other works by this author on: GSW Google Scholar Author and Article Information Falk Amelung 1Department of Geophysics, Stanford University, Stanford, California 94305, USA Devin L. Galloway 2U.S. Geological Survey, Sacramento, California 95819, USA John W. Bell 3Nevada Bureau of Mines and Geology, University of Nevada, Reno, Nevada 89557, USA Howard A. Zebker 1Department of Geophysics, Stanford University, Stanford, California 94305, USA Randell J. Laczniak 4U.S. Geological Survey, Las Vegas, Nevada 89119, USA Publisher: Geological Society of America First Online: 02 Jun 2017 Online ISSN: 1943-2682 Print ISSN: 0091-7613 Geological Society of America Geology (1999) 27 (6): 483–486. https://doi.org/10.1130/0091-7613(1999)027<0483:STUADO>2.3.CO;2 Article history First Online: 02 Jun 2017 Cite View This Citation Add to Citation Manager Share Icon Share Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email Permissions Search Site Citation Falk Amelung, Devin L. Galloway, John W. Bell, Howard A. Zebker, Randell J. Laczniak; Sensing the ups and downs of Las Vegas: InSAR reveals structural control of land subsidence and aquifer-system deformation. Geology 1999;; 27 (6): 483–486. doi: https://doi.org/10.1130/0091-7613(1999)027<0483:STUADO>2.3.CO;2 Download citation file: Ris (Zotero) Refmanager EasyBib Bookends Mendeley Papers EndNote RefWorks BibTex toolbar search Search Dropdown Menu toolbar search search input Search input auto suggest filter your search All ContentBy SocietyGeology Search Advanced Search Abstract Land subsidence in Las Vegas, Nevada, United States, between April 1992 and December 1997 was measured using spaceborne interferometric synthetic aperture radar. The detailed deformation maps clearly show that the spatial extent of subsidence is controlled by geologic structures (faults) and sediment composition (clay thickness). The maximum detected subsidence during the 5.75 yr period is 19 cm. Comparison with leveling data indicates that the subsidence rates declined during the past decade as a result of rising ground-water levels brought about by a net reduction in ground-water extraction. Temporal analysis also detects seasonal subsidence and uplift patterns, which provide information about the elastic and inelastic properties of the aquifer system and their spatial variability. This content is PDF only. Please click on the PDF icon to access. First Page Preview Close Modal You do not have access to this content, please speak to your institutional administrator if you feel you should have access.