Brandon Shuck

Assistant Professor Louisiana State University

  • Baton Rouge LA

Dr. Shuck is broadly interested in tectonic processes within the lithosphere.

Contact

Louisiana State University

View more experts managed by Louisiana State University

Areas of Expertise

Tectonics and Structural Geology
Lithosphere
Seismic Imaging
Geologic Hazards
Tectonic Evolution

Research Focus

Solid Earth Geophysics & Tectonic Evolution

Dr. Shuck’s research focuses on solid-earth geophysics—tectonic evolution of the lithosphere at subduction zones, rifted margins, and transform boundaries, and the hazards they generate. He uses active-source multichannel seismic reflection, wide-angle ocean-bottom seismometers, and seismic-imaging workflows to map crustal structure and model stress regimes driving earthquakes, magmatism, and continental breakup.

Education

University of Texas at Austin

Ph.D.

Geological Sciences

2021

Western Colorado University

B.S.

Geology (Petroleum Emphasis)

2015

Western Colorado University

B.S.

Mathematics

2015

Accomplishments

University of Texas Institute for Geophysics Ewing-Worzel Fellowship

2018

University of Texas Institute for Geophysics Outstanding Graduate Student Award

2018

Jackson School Research Symposium: 1st place, Early Career Students Category

2018

Media Appearances

Tsunami warnings caused panic. How close to disaster did we come?

USA Today  print

2025-07-30

Brandon Shuck, a solid-earth geophysicist at Louisiana State University, said it's important to note that the size of the quake doesn't directly correlate to the size of a tsunami. He said factors affecting the amount of water shifted can include where the quake occurred, what other nearby faults might have been triggered or if an underwater landslide happened.

View More

Why a huge quake off Russia sent tsunamis to Japan, Hawaii, California

Washington Post  print

2025-07-30

So called “great” earthquakes — 8.0 or higher in magnitude — tend to occur about once a year, with quakes as strong as Wednesday’s only coming once a decade on average, said Brandon Shuck, an assistant professor of geology and geophysics at Louisiana State University.

View More

Articles

Heterogeneous Earth’s mantle drilled at an embryonic ocean

Nature Communications

2025

Mantle processes control plate tectonics and exert an influence on biogeochemical cycles. However, the proportion of mantle sampled in-situ is minimal, as it is buried beneath igneous crust and sediments. Here we report the lithological characteristics of two mantle sections from an embryonic ocean drilled by the International Ocean Discovery Program (IODP) in the Tyrrhenian Sea. Contrary to the mantle drilled at Mid Ocean Ridges (MORs) and hyperextended passive margins, our findings reveal exceptionally heterogeneous and fertile mantle lithologies, ranging from fertile lherzolites to depleted harzburgites and dunites, interlayered with pyroxenites. Plagioclase- and clinopyroxene-rich layers, hydrous potassic magmatic veins, and mafic intrusions indicate substantial mantle refertilization and delayed inception of magmatic crust.

View more

Anomalous sediment consolidation and alteration from buried incoming plate seamounts along the Cascadia margin

Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems

2025

Oceanic plate seamounts are believed to play an important role in megathrust rupture at subduction zones, although consistent relationships between subducting seamounts and plate interface seismicity patterns are not found. While most studies focus on impacts linked to their topography, seamounts are also sites of heterogeneity in incoming plate sediments that may contribute to megathrust properties. Here, we characterize incoming plate sediments along the Cascadia subduction zone using new high‐resolution seismic images and compressional wave (Vp) models from the CASIE21 multi‐channel‐seismic experiment.

View more

Subducting plate structure and megathrust morphology from deep seismic imaging linked to earthquake rupture segmentation at Cascadia

Science Advances

2024

The origin of rupture segmentation along subduction zone megathrusts and linkages to the structural evolution of the subduction zone are poorly understood. Here, regional-scale seismic imaging of the Cascadia margin is used to characterize the megathrust spanning ~900 km from Vancouver Island to the California border, across the seismogenic zone to a few tens of kilometers from the coast. Discrete domains in lower plate geometry and sediment underthrusting are identified, not evident in prior regional plate models, which align with changes in lithology and structure of the upper plate and interpreted paleo-rupture patches. Strike-slip faults in the lower plate associated with oblique subduction mark boundaries between regions of distinct lower plate geometry. Their formation may be linked to changes in upper plate structure across long-lived upper plate faults.

View more

Show All +

Affiliations

  • American Geophysical Union
  • European Geophysical Union
  • Asia Oceania Geosciences Society
  • Geological Society of America
  • National Science Foundation GeoPRISMS
Show All +

Event Appearances

The role of the Nootka Fault Zone in the ongoing capture of the Explorer microplate and cessation of subduction along northern Cascadia

2023 | American Geophysical Union Fall Meeting  

Slab tearing and segmented subduction termination along northern Cascadia

2023 | Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory Marine Geology and Geophysics Departmental Seminar Series  

Influence of the Nootka Fault Zone segmenting subduction processes along the northern Cascadia margin

2023 | University of Washington Earth and Space Sciences SeismoLunch Seminar  

Research Grants

Apply-To-Sail: IODP Expedition 402, Tyrrhenian Magmatism and Mantle Exhumation

International Ocean Discovery Program

2023

Imaging tectonic deformation and hydration of the incoming Juan de Fuca oceanic plate at the Cascadia subduction zone from new multi-channel seismic data

Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory Undergraduate Work-Study Position

2022

Media

Social