Welcome to the Oregon Hazards Lab
Using Science, Technology, and Community Engagement to Understand, Detect, and Mitigate Multi-Hazards within the Pacific Northwest
The Oregon Hazards Lab is a research lab within the University of Oregon's Department of Earth Sciences. We currently partner in these efforts:
Pacific Northwest Seismic Network
Along with the U.S. Geological Survey and the University of Washington, we monitoring 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 our partnership with the Department of Homeland Security, we are deploying 30 smoke sensors across Western Oregon and testing 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.
Willamette Watershed Project
The Oregon Hazards Lab is developing resilient communications infrastructure for the Santiam, Sisters, and McKenzie River corridors that will support a natural disaster monitoring and alerting network.
219
ShakeAlert Seismic Stations
45
Wildfire Detection Cameras
30
Wildfire Smoke Sensors
2018
Year OHAZ Was Founded
27
Full-Time Staff
7
Student Researchers
News from the Oregon Hazards Lab
New Wildfire Detection Camera Installed in Lake County
The new camera on Green Mountain was made possible by the partnership between the Lakeview District of the BLM and the Oregon Hazards Lab at the University of Oregon. The Green Mountain camera is hosted on the ALERTWest platform and is part of a 1,000 plus camera network.
Bureau of Land Management – Lakeview District Expands Fire Detection Network
The Bureau of Land Management Lakeview District and its partners at the Oregon Hazards Lab at the University of Oregon have installed another new wildfire detection camera in Southeastern Oregon. The Green Mountain camera is part of a 1,000-plus-camera network hosted on the ALERTWest platform.
OHAZ is Hiring Student Field Technicians for Summer 2024
Undergraduate field technicians will travel to remote locations across Oregon to install, maintain, and operate multi-hazard monitoring systems. Position duration will be from June 1 to September 30, full time Monday through Friday. Field deployments of 1 ‐ 5 days will be frequent throughout the summer season, with UO lab‐based work in‐between deployments. No prior experience is necessary.