Permanently Instrumented Field Sites in NEES: A Resource for Future Geotechnical Research

One part of the NEES portfolio is two permanently instrumented field site for monitoring soil-foundation-structure interaction (SFSI), ground motion, ground deformation, and pore-water pressure response to both active and passive seismic sources. The two sites, the Garner Valley Downhole Array and the Wildlife Liquefaction Array, are located in the southern California region. Both sites have many years of previous monitoring history and have been well characterized. These field sites will be used to monitor response generated by local and regional earthquakes and for active experiments-using shakers. A reconfigurable steel-framed SFSI test structure is being constructed at the GVDA site and instrumented with sensors installed in the structure, foundation, and underlying soil. The focus of this simple structure is the study of the physics of SFSI without the complexities of "real" structures. This pair of NEES field sites will also provide an excellent bed for new in-situ site characterization techniques and new sensor technologies. Data from both sites will be contributed to the NEES Data repository and the advanced National Seismic System.