Abstract
The magnitude (Mw) 7.9 Wenchuan earthquake occurred on 12 May 2008 in the Longmen Shan region, the transition zone between the Tibetan Plateau and the Sichuan Basin, China, resulting in extensive damage throughout central and western China (Fig. 1). Official estimates of casualties released by the Chinese Government as of 4 June 2008 include 69,122 confirmed dead, 373,606 injured, and 17,991 missing persons. To understand the seismic faulting mechanism and surface deformation features associated with the earthquake, including rupture length and slip distribution, our survey group traveled to the epicentral area two days after the earthquake and undertook nine days of fieldwork. Here, we present some photographs taken during our field investigations that show deformation features and damage resulting from the Wenchuan earthquake. We mourn for the victims of Wenchuan earthquake in China.
