Dr Tim Wright

Royal Society Research Fellow

Contact details

Telephone extension: 35258

Email address: t.wright@earth.leeds.ac.uk

Room: 8.142

Welcome

Tim's research is focused on using satellites to measure how Earth's continents behave when they are squashed, stretched or sheared. Recently Tim has been researching a major rifting episode in Ethiopia, where a 60-km-long segment of the plate boundary opened by up to 8 m in September 2005, causing hundreds of earthquakes and a small volcanic eruption. Identical processes occur on mid-ocean ridges, but this is the first time that such an event has occurred on land in the era of satellite geodesy. Eventually, this could lead to the formation of a new ocean basin. Tim also researches deformation that occurs around faults before, during and after earthquakes. In the future, he hopes to continue to use satellite data to work out the physical mechanisms responsible for causing earthquakes, building mountains, and ripping continents apart.

Major rifting episode in Ethiopia (pdf file)

Publications

Keir, D; Hamling, IJ; Ayele, A; Calais, E; Ebinger, C; Wright, TJ; Jacques, E; Mohamed, K; Hammond, JOS; Belachew, M; Baker, E; Rowland, JV; Lewi, E; Bennati, L (2009) Evidence for focused magmatic accretion at segment centers from lateral dike injections captured beneath the Red Sea rift in Afar, GEOLOGY, 37(1), pp59-62. doi:10.1130/G25147A.1

Hamling, IJ; Ayele, A; Bennati, L; Calais, E; Ebinger, CJ; Keir, D; Lewi, E; Wright, TJ; Yirgu, G (2009) Geodetic observations of the ongoing Dabbahu rifting episode: new dyke intrusions in 2006 and 2007, GEOPHYS J INT, 178(2), pp989-1003. doi:10.1111/j.1365-246X.2009.04163.x

Wang, H; Wright, TJ; Biggs, J (2009) Interseismic slip rate of the northwestern Xianshuihe fault from InSAR data, GEOPHYS RES LETT, 36, . doi:10.1029/2008GL036560

Nooner, SL; Bennati, L; Calais, E; Buck, WR; Hamling, IJ; Wright, TJ; Lewi, E (2009) Post-rifting relaxation in the Afar region, Ethiopia, GEOPHYS RES LETT, 36, . doi:10.1029/2009GL040502

Ayele, A; Keir, D; Ebinger, C; Wright, TJ; Stuart, GW; Buck, WR; Jacques, E; Ogubazghi, G; Sholan, J (2009) September 2005 mega-dike emplacement in the Manda-Harraro nascent oceanic rift (Afar depression), GEOPHYS RES LETT, 36, . doi:10.1029/2009GL039605

Barisin, I; Leprince, S; Parsons, B; Wright, T (2009) Surface displacements in the September 2005 Afar rifting event from satellite image matching: Asymmetric uplift and faulting, GEOPHYS RES LETT, 36, . doi:10.1029/2008GL036431

Biggs, J; Burgmann, R; Freymueller, JT; Lu, Z; Parsons, B; Ryder, I; Schmalzle, G; Wright, T (2009) The postseismic response to the 2002 M 7.9 Denali Fault earthquake: constraints from InSAR 2003-2005, GEOPHYS J INT, 176(2), pp353-367. doi:10.1111/j.1365-246X.2008.03932.x

Fukahata, Y; Wright, TJ (2008) A non-linear geodetic data inversion using ABIC for slip distribution on a fault with an unknown dip angle, GEOPHYS J INT, 173(2), pp353-364. doi:10.1111/j.1365-246X.2007.03713.x

Ebinger, CJ; Keir, D; Ayele, A; Calais, E; Wright, TJ; Belachew, M; Hammond, JOS; Campbell, E; Buck, WR (2008) Capturing magma intrusion and faulting processes during continental rupture: seismicity of the Dabbahu (Afar) rift, GEOPHYS J INT, 174(3), pp1138-1152. doi:10.1111/j.1365-246X.2008.03877.x

Elliott, JR; Biggs, J; Parsons, B; Wright, TJ (2008) InSAR slip rate determination on the Altyn Tagh Fault, northern Tibet, in the presence of topographically correlated atmospheric delays, GEOPHYS RES LETT, 35(12), . doi:10.1029/2008GL033659

Baer, G; Funning, GJ; Shamir, G; Wright, TJ (2008) The 1995 November 22, M-w 7.2 Gulf of Elat earthquake cycle revisited, GEOPHYS J INT, 175(3), pp1040-1054. doi:10.1111/j.1365-246X.2008.03901.x

Nissen, E; Emmerson, B; Funning, GJ; Mistrukov, A; Parsons, B; Robinson, DP; Rogozhin, E; Wright, TJ (2007) Combining InSAR and seismology to study the 2003 Siberian Altai earthquakes - dextral strike-slip and anticlockwise rotations in the northern India-Eurasia collision zone, GEOPHYS J INT, 169(1), pp216-232. doi:10.1111/j.1365-246X.2006.03286.x

Rowland, JV; Baker, E; Ebinger, CJ; Keir, D; Kidane, T; Biggs, J; Hayward, N; Wright, TJ (2007) Fault growth at a nascent slow-spreading ridge: 2005 Dabbahu rifting episode, Afar, GEOPHYS J INT, 171(3), pp1226-1246. doi:10.1111/j.1365-246X.2007.03584.x

Funning, GJ; Parsons, B; Wright, TJ (2007) Fault slip in the 1997 Manyi, Tibet earthquake from linear elastic modelling of InSAR displacements, GEOPHYS J INT, 169(3), pp988-1008. doi:10.1111/j.1365-246X.2006.03318.x

Biggs, J; Wright, T; Lu, Z; Parsons, B (2007) Multi-interferogram method for measuring interseismic deformation: Denali fault, Alaska, GEOPHYS J INT, 170(3), pp1165-1179. doi:10.1111/j.1365-246X.2007.03415.x

Ryder, I; Parsons, B; Wright, TJ; Funning, GJ (2007) Post-seismic motion following the 1997 Manyi (Tibet) earthquake: InSAR observations and modelling, GEOPHYS J INT, 169(3), pp1009-1027. doi:10.1111/j.1365-246X.2006.03312.x

Taymaz, T; Wright, TJ; Yolsal, S; Tan, O; Fielding, E; Seyitoglu, G (2007) Source characteristics of the 6 June 2000 Orta–Çankiri (central Turkey) earthquake: a synthesis of seismological, geological and geodetic (InSAR) observations, and internal deformation of the Anatolian plate, Special Publication Geological Society of London, 291, pp259-290. doi:10.1144/SP291.12

Pathier, E; Fielding, EJ; Wright, TJ; Walker, R; Parsons, BE; Hensley, S (2006) Displacement field and slip distribution of the 2005 Kashmir earthquake from SAR imagery, GEOPHYS RES LETT, 33(20), . doi:10.1029/2006GL027193

Biggs, J; Bergman, E; Emmerson, B; Funning, GJ; Jackson, J; Parsons, B; Wright, TJ (2006) Fault identification for buried strike-slip earthquakes using InSAR: The 1994 and 2004 Al Hoceima, Morocco earthquakes, GEOPHYS J INT, 166(3), pp1347-1362. doi:10.1111/j.1365-246X.2006.03071.x

Wright, TJ; Ebinger, C; Biggs, J; Ayele, A; Yirgu, G; Keir, D; Stork, A (2006) Magma-maintained rift segmentation at continental rupture in the 2005 Afar dyking episode, NATURE, 442(7100), pp291-294. doi:10.1038/nature04978

Jackson, J; Bouchon, M; Fielding, E; Funning, G; Ghorashi, M; Hatzfeld, D; Nazari,, H; Parsons, B; Priestley, K; Talebian, M; Tatar, M; Walker, R; Wright, TJ (2006) Seismotectonic, rupture process, and earthquake-hazard aspects of the 2003 December 26 Bam, Iran, earthquake, Geophysical Journal International, 166(3), pp1270-1292. doi:doi: 10.1111/j.1365-246X.2006.03056.x

Parsons, B; Wright, T; Rowe, P; Andrews, J; Jackson, J; Walker, R; Khatib, M; Talebian, M; Bergman, E; Engdahl, ER (2006) The 1994 Sefidabeh (eastern Iran) earthquakes revisited: new evidence from satellite radar interferometry and carbonate dating about the growth of an active fold above a blind thrust fault, GEOPHYS J INT, 164(1), pp202-217. doi:10.1111/j.1365-246X.2005.02655.X

Muller, JR; Aydin, A; Wright, TJ (2006) Using an elastic dislocation model to investigate static Coulomb stress change scenarios for earthquake ruptures in the eastern Marmara Sea region, Turkey, In: S. J. H. B UITER, G. SCHREURS (Ed) Analogue and Numerical Modelling of Crustal-Scale Processes, Geological Society, London, Special Publications, 253, Analogue and Numerical Modelling of Crustal-Scale Processes, pp397-414. doi:doi:10.1144/GSL.SP.2006.253.01.21

Resor, PG; Pollard, DD; Wright, TJ; Beroza, GC (2005) Integrating high-precision aftershock locations and geodetic observations to model coseismic deformation associated with the 1995 Kozani-Grevena earthquake, Greece, J GEOPHYS RES-SOL EA, 110(B9), . doi:10.1029/2004JB003263

Funning, GJ; Parsons, B; Wright, TJ; Jackson, JA; Fielding, EJ (2005) Surface displacements and source parameters of the 2003 Bam (Iran) earthquake from Envisat advanced synthetic aperture radar imagery, J GEOPHYS RES-SOL EA, 110(B9), . doi:10.1029/2004JB003338

Funning, GJ; Barke, RMD; Lamb, SH; Minaya, E; Parsons, B; Wright, TJ (2005) The 1998 Aiquile, Bolivia earthquake: A seismically active fault revealed with InSAR, EARTH PLANET SC LETT, 232(1-2), pp39-49. doi:10.1016/j.epsl.2005.01.013

Fielding, EJ; Wright, TJ; Muller, J; Parsons, BE; Walker, R (2004) Aseismic deformation of a fold-and-thrust belt imaged by synthetic aperture radar interferometry near Shahdad, southeast Iran, GEOLOGY, 32(7), pp577-580. doi:10.1130/G20452.1

Wright, TJ; Lu, Z; Wicks, C (2004) Constraining the slip distribution and fault geometry of the M-w 7.9, 3 November 2002, Denali fault earthquake with interferometric synthetic aperture radar and global positioning system data, B SEISMOL SOC AM, 94(6), ppS175-S189.

Wright, TJ; Parsons, B; England, PC; Fielding, EJ (2004) InSAR observations of low slip rates on the major faults of western Tibet, SCIENCE, 305(5681), pp236-239.

Talebian, M; Fielding, EJ; Funning, GJ; Ghorashi, M; Jackson, J; Nazari, H; Parsons, B; Priestley, K; Rosen, PA; Walker, R; Wright, TJ (2004) The 2003 Bam (Iran) earthquake: Rupture of a blind strike-slip fault, GEOPHYS RES LETT, 31(11), . doi:10.1029/2004GL020058

Wright, TJ; Parsons, BE; Lu, Z (2004) Toward mapping surface deformation in three dimensions using InSAR, GEOPHYS RES LETT, 31(1), . doi:10.1029/2003GL018827

Wright, TJ; Lu, Z; Wicks, C (2003) Source model for the M-w 6.7, 23 October 2002, Nenana Mountain Earthquake (Alaska) from InSAR, GEOPHYS RES LETT, 30(18), . doi:10.1029/2003GL018014

Burgmann, R; Ayhan, ME; Fielding, EJ; Wright, TJ; McClusky, S; Aktug, B; Demir, C; Lenk, O; Turkezer, A (2002) Deformation during the 12 November 1999 Duzce, Turkey, earthquake, from GPS and InSAR data, B SEISMOL SOC AM, 92(1), pp161-171.

Wright, TJ (2002) Remote monitoring of the earthquake cycle using satellite radar interferometry, PHILOS T ROY SOC A, 360(1801), pp2873-2888. doi:10.1098/rsta.2002.1094

Wright, T; Parsons, B; Fielding, E (2001) Measurement of interseismic strain accumulation across the North Anatolian Fault by satellite radar interferometry, GEOPHYS RES LETT, 28(10), pp2117-2120.

Berberian, M; Jackson, JA; Fielding, E; Parsons, BE; Priestley, K; Qorashi, M; Talebian, M; Walker, R; Wright, TJ; Baker, C (2001) The 1998 March 14 Fandoqa earthquake (M-w 6.6) in Kerman province, southeast Iran: re-rupture of the 1981 Sirch earthquake fault, triggering of slip on adjacent thrusts and the active tectonics of the Gowk fault zone, GEOPHYS J INT, 146(2), pp371-398.

Wright, T; Fielding, E; Parsons, B (2001) Triggered slip: observations of the 17 August 1999 Izmit (Turkey) earthquake using radar interferometry, GEOPHYS RES LETT, 28(6), pp1079-1082.

Wright, TJ; Parsons, BE; Jackson, JA; Haynes, M; Fielding, EJ; England, PC; Clarke, PJ (1999) Source parameters of the 1 October 1995 Dinar (Turkey) earthquake from SAR interferometry and seismic bodywave modelling, EARTH PLANET SC LETT, 172(1-2), pp23-37.