Category Archives: Geology

We Are Bernal Heights. We Are The People of the Chert

Posted on January 13, 2012 by

We are Bernal Heights. We are the People of the Chert. We are the People of the Chert, and we are growing larger! In the remote terrain high above San Francisco, @willak captured this SHOCKING photographic evidence of a new … Continue reading →

Posted in Bernal Hill, Geology, Photography | 2 Comments

Happy Holidays, Bernalwood!

Posted on December 25, 2011 by

With all the best to you and yours, and a special thank you to the clever neighbor who decorated North Rock for the season. Enjoy! PHOTO: Shane O’Neill

Posted in Bernal Hill, Events, Geology | 3 Comments

Young Child Discovers the Joy of Bernal’s Chert

Posted on November 14, 2011 by

Neighbor Isaac captured the moment when a small child in Bernal Heights first experienced the Joy of Chert. Though her young brain hardly comprehends the multi-faceted magnificence of our chert, we all know that in an intuitive, pre-reptilian way, she … Continue reading →

Posted in Children and Parenting, Geology | Leave a comment

Our Seismologist Explains Why Bernal’s Chert Is Better Than Soft Rock During an Earthquake

Posted on October 17, 2011 by

In pretty much every earthquake post that has appeared on this blog, I have extolled the virtues of Bernal’s beloved red chert because it doesn’t shake all that hard even during really big seismic events — especially compared to the … Continue reading →

Posted in Bernal Hill, Geology, Geology and Seismology | 23 Comments

Shaking Bernalwood: Today’s Earthquake Moved Our Chert

Posted on April 18, 2011 by

Bernalwood’s own Bronwyn Ximm reports that today’s freaky-auspicious 105th anniversary earthquake moved the ground beneath her home: OMG did you feel that? We just did.. chert be damned! Several similar reports coming through via Twitter. For those keeping score at … Continue reading →

Posted in Geology, Geology and Seismology, Uncategorized | 1 Comment

Our Seismologist Explains Why the 1906 Earthquake Did Little Damage to Bernalwood

Posted on April 18, 2011 by

As we noted earlier, today is the 105th anniversary of the Great Earthquake of 1906 — the infamous M7.8 rupture along the San Andreas Fault that severely damaged San Francisco before subsequent fires did the rest of the work destroying … Continue reading →

Posted in Geology, Geology and Seismology, History | 6 Comments

Meanwhile, Will Bernalwood Get Hit By a Radioactive Cloud?

Posted on March 17, 2011 by

It goes without saying that the situation in Japan is upsetting. As fellow fault-dwellers, most of us feel a spontaneous sympathy toward others who endure the calamity and loss of an earthquake — and a 9.0 is a VERY big … Continue reading →

Posted in Events, Geology, Geology and Seismology, Uncategorized, Weather | Leave a comment

Visualize the Topography of Bernal Heights in 1853 (Hint: More Wet! Even More Hills!)

Posted on March 10, 2011 by

Although no one is alive today who ever once saw it, much of the land around Bernal Hill used to be riverbeds and wetlands — particularly to the north and east. But what exactly was the local topography like roughly … Continue reading →

Posted in Geology, History, Technology | 7 Comments

New Earthquake Zoning Maps Should Not Rattle Bernal Heights

Posted on February 14, 2011 by

Last week, the California Geological Survey released its latest set of fault zoning maps. These divide the state into a rectangular grid, with the parts of the grid containing active faults marked in red. Unsurprisingly, there’s a lot of red … Continue reading →

Posted in Geology, Geology and Seismology | 6 Comments