Don and Chris

You are right, I went back and redid my research on the Santa Monica fault and found the link below.

The paper does mention perceptions that I had in previous post about the fault being possibly inactive. As this newer paper points out the last quake may have been 3000 years ago, NOT more than 10,000. This info is based on a trench that was built across the fault. Prior to the trench it was assumed that the last quake may have been more than 10,00 years ago if at all.

I drive over the fault every day on the way to and from work so I see the scarps they are talking about. Does anyone know how such a slow moving fault creates such noticeable scarps?

Chris: I was refering to the Newport segment in the LA basin that has not ruptured in noted times.

• Santa Monica Fault