Issues

Can you spot the highest mountain of Ecuador, the inactive stratovolcano Chimborazo (height of 6,263 m), in this three-dimensional geographic map? While not being the tallest peak in the Andes or globally, the summit of Chimboranzo holds the record of being the farthest point on the Earth surface from the Earth’s center, due to its location along the equatorial bulge. This image dramatically illustrates how tectonic forces shape the Andes, causing associated volcanism and seismic activity. The magnitude M_w 7.8 Pedernales earthquake (April 16, 2016) was the latest very large thrust earthquake in Ecuador, however, small-to-moderate magnitude earthquakes are abundant in the Central Ecuadorian subduction zone. In this issue, the study by Wickham-Piotrowski et al., entitled “Achieving a Comprehensive Microseismicity Catalog through a Deep-Learning-Based Workflow: Applications in the Central Ecuadorian Subduction Zone” illuminates seismic activity in the subduction zone, applying a modern machine-learning approach, highlighting also aftershocks that trace the rupture zone of the 2016 Pedernales earthquake.

Image credit: iStock.com/FrankRamspott