This research involves determination of the structure of the lower crust and upper mantle beneath the southern High Sierra of California. The arrival times of four hundred teleseisms recorded by a temporary network of 17 stations deployed in the area and the permanent stations of the Southern California Seismic Network will be inverted for velocity structure. Further analysis will involve the possible identification of converted phases generated at interfaces within the lithosphere and the combination of Pn with teleseismic arrival times to separate anomalies in the crust and mantle. Constraining the lithospheric structure of the Sierra may resolve the cause of the Neogene uplift of the High Sierra and improve our understanding of the tectonics of mountain ranges in extending, seismically active regions. This work is a component of the National Earthquake Hazard Reduction Program.
