This research is to study the lithospheric structure and active tectonics of the Atlas mountain system in Morocco. Data produced by a recently installed modern, telemetered, digital seismic network in a joint effort by Cornell University and institutes in Morocco will be used in the effort. The Atlas mountain belt is an active transpressive system with abundant active folding and thrust and strike-slip faulting. Its evolution and structure is fundamentally different from that of most mountain belts located along convergent plate boundaries, such as the Himalayas, Zagros, Andes, and Alps. Different lithospheric models will be tested by seismic and gravity data to explain an apparent excess of mass beneath the Atlas mountains. This research is a component of the National Earthquake Hazard Reduction Program.
