Kathryn Materna

Kathryn Materna is an Assistant Professor of Geological Sciences at the University of Colorado Boulder and a member of the Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences (CIRES), as announced in a January 8, 2024 news item welcoming her as a "tectonic geodesist" to enhance CU Boulder's geodesy research capabilities.

Her research focuses on tectonic geodesy using GNSS, satellite radar (InSAR), and geophysical datasets to investigate fault movement and plate tectonics processes. Key interests include:

• Earthquake cycle dynamics (coseismic/interseismic deformation)
• Aseismic creep and slow slip events
• Induced seismicity from anthropogenic activities
• Seasonal elastic loading and hydrological effects
• Geothermal energy-related deformation

Materna's work spans diverse tectonic settings including California (San Francisco Bay Area, Mendocino Triple Junction, Brawley Seismic Zone), Southeast Asia, Iceland, and Botswana. Her publication trends reveal increasing sophistication in high-resolution geodetic monitoring, with recent studies emphasizing quantitative analysis of strain rate uncertainties for seismic hazard models, transient deformation in geothermal systems, and multi-fault interactions during earthquake sequences. She integrates field observations with viscoelastic modeling to unravel complex fault behaviors across spatial and temporal scales.

As part of CIRES, Materna participates in the CECA (CIRES Early Career Community), which fosters collaboration among graduate students and postdocs across academic units. Her educational background includes foundational training at premier institutions, positioning her at the forefront of modern geodetic earthquake science.