Welcome to the Oregon Hazards Lab
Using Science, Technology, and Community Engagement to Understand, Detect, and Mitigate Multi-Hazards within the Pacific NorthwestWe Are Oregon, Rising
Learn how the mission and vision of OHAZ fit within Oregon Rising, the University of Oregon’s strategic framework to accelerate its impact on our state, our nation, and the world.
226+
PNSN Seismic Monitoring Stations Across Oregon
68+
OHAZ Wildfire Detection Cameras Across Oregon
4.2Mil
Oregonians With Access to ShakeAlert EEW Alerts
2018
Year OHAZ Was Founded
19
OHAZ Staff
4
Student Researchers
The Oregon Hazards Lab is a program within the University of Oregon's Department of Earth Sciences. We currently partner in these efforts:
Mobile Deployment Units
The Oregon Hazards Lab is building out a stock of lightweight portable wildfire camera kits that public land management agencies can rapidly deploy to monitor new ignitions.
Pacific Northwest Seismic Network
Along with the U.S. Geological Survey and the University of Washington, we monitor ground motion to better understand earthquake and volcano hazards and their impacts on communities in Oregon and Washington.
ShakeAlert® Earthquake Early Warning System
Since 2014, the Oregon Hazards Lab has been an instrumental partner in building and promoting the U.S. Geological Survey’s earthquake early warning system.
Wildfire Detection Cameras
With hundreds of mountaintop cameras installed throughout the western United States, this high-speed wildfire detection network provides firefighters and first responders a new way to spot and track wildfires.
Wildfire Smoke Sensors
As part of a partnership with the Department of Homeland Security, we deployed 30 smoke sensors across Western Oregon in 2023 and tested their effectiveness at detecting emerging wildfires.
Sage Continuum
We are building a continent-spanning network of smart sensors to improve the flow of information between scientists and the natural world.
News from the Oregon Hazards Lab
ShakeAlert Earthquake Early Warning Now Available to Oregon Public
The ShakeAlert Earthquake Early Warning System is coming to the Pacific Northwest. Alerts will be available to all cell phones in Oregon starting on March 11, 2021. Alerts can give people critical moments ranging from seconds to tens of seconds to prepare for shaking, depending on their distance from the earthquake’s epicenter.
New Funding Will Advance Oregon’s Part in the ShakeAlert Earthquake Early Warning System
The U.S. Geologic Survey announced $1.6 million in federal funding toward Oregon’s efforts to continue upgrading its portion of the ShakeAlert Earthquake Early Warning System. With the funds, the Oregon Hazards Lab at the University of Oregon will finish installing new seismic monitoring stations on the Southern and Central Oregon coast.
Funding Flows to ShakeAlert Earthquake Early Warning System in Oregon
The Oregon Hazards Lab at the University of Oregon will receive another round of federal funding — worth about $400,000 — to continue their research into earthquake early warning systems.