ILEANA MADALINA TIBULEAC

 

Research seismologist

Address:  

Seismology, MS/174 
University of Nevada at Reno, 
Reno, NV 89557

e-mail address: ileana@seismo.unr.edu

                       

EDUCATION

 

Ph.D. in Geophysics, SOUTHERN METHODIST UNIVERSITY Dallas, TX.,

   15 May 1999, overall GPA: 3.827/4.0 scale.

   Thesis: Array Measurements of P and PcP Slowness Residuals with

   Implications for Lateral Heterogeneity in the Lower Mantle beneath

   the Caribbean Sea and Other Geophysical Studies

Master of Science in Nuclear Physics, BUCHAREST UNIVERSITY, ROMANIA,

   Overall GPA: 9.80/10.0 scale.

   Thesis: Thorium Utilization in Nuclear Plants

Bachelor of Science in Physics, BUCHAREST UNIVERSITY, ROMANIA.

 

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

                                                                                                                                                           University of Nevada Reno, May 2006 - present
Research Interests Include: 

Seismic Network  Administration 


Nuclear Monitoring Research


Lower Mantle Heterogeneity


Earth structure (crust, tranzition zone, lower mantle)


Surface wave modelling

                                                                                                      

 

WESTON GEOPHYSICAL CORPORATION, Feb. 2002 - April 2006
Research Interests include:

 

NUCLEAR MONITORING RESEARCH

Developing automatic secondary seismic phase detectors (Lg, Rg) using wavelet transforms and other signal processing methods.  Principal investigator on a SBIR phase I awarded between July – Dec 2002.  Applying array processing methods to event location and discrimination studies.

 

LOWER MANTLE HETEROGENEITY

Continuing studies on the extent of the lower mantle heterogeneity beneath the Caribbean Sea using new sets of data. 

 

PRINCETON UNIVERSITY Research Associate, 2001 – 2002

 

LOWER MANTLE HETEROGENEITY

Analyzed and interpreted P wave amplitudes as observed in the past ten years with the new, global digital broadband seismic networks. The study was original because we used new data sources, and also because it concluded that focusing and defocusing in the mantle is an important factor for compressional wave amplitude variation, and this effect is underestimated by current tomographic models.

 

SOUTHERN METHODIST UNIVERSITY Post doctoral Fellow, 15 May 1999 – February 1'st, 2000.

Research interests included:

 

SEISMIC ARRAY CALIBRATION

I was part of a team that calibrated the TXAR (Lajitas, Texas), NVAR (Mina, Nevada) and ILAR (Eilson, Alaska) seismic arrays. I assessed the location capability at NVAR for events near the Nevada Test Site. I quantified the effect of elevation, geology and source azimuth on array locations and signal/noise level at search site.

 

LOWER MANTLE HETEROGENEITY

Using interpretation of anomalous slowness of P, PcP and other deep phases, recorded at the TXAR and YKA seismic arrays I have developed a model of confined lower mantle heterogeneity beneath the Caribbean Sea.

 

INFRASOUND ARRAYS

I was part of a team testing methods of noise reduction for infrasound arrays and infrasound signal characterization and discrimination.

 

WAVELETS IN GEOPHYSICS

I continued the study for developing a wavelet based method for dominant wavelength identification in time series.  We have applied this method to digital Magellan SAR data from Venus.  I have studied the possibility of extending the method to isotope data in ancient ice cores.

 

SEISMIC DISCRIMINATION STUDIES

I was part of a team working on discrimination between simultaneous and delay-fired explosions.  I investigated the dependence of Lg wave characteristics on the type of source, using wavelet transforms.

 

SOUTHERN METHODIST UNIVERSITY Research Assistant, 1994-1999.

Research accomplished:

 

LOWER MANTLE HETEROGENEITY

I have studied anomalous slowness residuals (2-3 s/deg) and azimuth residuals of P and PcP waves from teleseismic events, recorded at TXAR and YKA seismic arrays, and demonstrated they were the result of heterogeneity in the lower mantle.  Using ray tracing, I quantitatively described the heterogeneity using as starting model tomographic studies of the region.

 

WAVELETS IN SEISMOLOGY

I have developed a new automatic method for timing Lg arrivals using wavelet transforms to decompose the Lg signal into its components localized both in time and scale (inverse frequency).

 

WAVELETS IN PLANETOLOGY

Together with my colleague Rebecca Ghent, I have applied signal processing techniques and wavelet transforms to digital Magellan SAR data from Venus to determine dominant wavelengths in various types of ribbon terrain.

 

SEISMO-ACOUSTIC GROUND TRUTHING

Using wavelets transforms, I was part of a team working on array processing of meteors and space shuttle seismo-acoustic signals.

 

DIGITAL SEISMIC DATA PROCESSING

I have calibrated the TXAR (Lajitas, Texas) seismic array and developed a set of efficient array processing methods. The first order attitude of the Moho discontinuity beneath TXAR was determined as a result of this study.

 

BUCHAREST UNIVERSITY, Bucharest, Romania,

Assistant Professor, Mechanics, Thermodynamics and Physics of the Earth Department,

-

 

Teaching experience:

 - "Classical Mechanics" seminar and laboratory for first year students

 - "Molecular Physics and Heat" seminar and laboratory for first year students

 -"Computer Modeling" for second year students of the French Language section

Research experience:

Under the guidance of Dr. Cornelius Radu I studied seismicity parameters of the Vrancea Region, Romania.

 

INSTITUTE OF ATOMIC PHYSICS, BUCHAREST,

Amorphous Magnetic Materials Laboratory

 

I measured the thickness of thin layers of Fe and Al deposed by sputtering in AC and radio-frequency, using quartz crystals and fringes of equal chromatic order methods.

 

 

RELEVANT COURSES

 

1994 - 2000.  Applied Geophysical and Theoretical Geophysics, including;

** Theoretical Seismology **Heat Flow- Conduction**Digital Data Processing**Inversion Theory**Heat Flow- Convection **Isotope Geochemistry**Statistics for Engineers and Scientists**Thermodynamics

 

Workshops and Short Courses

-Fourth Workshop on 3-D Modeling of Earth Structure and Earthquake Source

Processes, Trieste, Italy, September 28th - October 9th, 1998

-Workshop Course on Wavelets and Filter Banks, Boston, May 20-22 1998 taught by Gilbert Strang (MIT) and Truong Nguyen (Boston University)

-SAGE – Summer of Applied Geophysical Experience, June-July 1995

 

. Examination for  Doctoral degree  at the Center for Physics of the Earth in Bucharest:

**Seismic Wave Propagation **Seismic Source Theory

 

  Courses at the Bucharest University:

**Mathematical Analysis and Algebra **Mechanics and Acoustics** Molecular Physics**Electricity and Magnetism**Chemistry **Materials Technology**Equations of Mathematical Physics**Analytical Mechanics and of Deforming Media **Optics **Physics of Atoms and Molecules**Nuclear Physics**Physics of Electronic Devices and Circuits**Electrodynamics and Theory of Relativity **Quantum Mechanics** Physics of Solid State**Physics of Nuclear Reactors **Spectral Methods of Analysis and Control**Utilization of Nuclear Radiation**Thermodynamics and Statistical Physics.

 

COMPUTERS

 

LINUX, UNIX and DOS/WINDOWS Platforms;

FORTRAN, C++ (beginner)

MATLAB, GEOTOOL, SEISTOOL, SAC, MATSEIS

 

HONORS AND ACTIVITIES

 

*Awarded a National Science Foundation Fellowship for attending the Fourth Workshop on 3-D Modeling of Earth Structure and Earthquake Source Processes, Trieste, Italy, September 28th - October 9th, 1998

*Awarded the Republican Fellowship for outstanding college students, 1987

*Awarded first prize at the National Physics Competition (for high school students) in

 

Intramural: basketball, ballroom dance; rollerblading, ski, tennis

 

 

ORGANIZATIONS

 

Seismological Society of America

American Geophysical Union

Sigma Chi Scientific Research Society

 

 

PUBLICATIONS

 

Papers

Tibuleac, I. M., G. Nolet, C. Mychaelson and I. Koulakov, (2003), P wave amplitudes in a 3 D Earth, Geophys. J. Int., 155, 1-10.

 

Anderson, D., E. T. Herrin, V. L. Teplitz and I. M. Tibuleac,(2003), Unexplained Sets of Seismographic Station Reports and A Set Consistent with a Quark Nugget Passage, in press, Bull. Seis. Soc. Am, http://www.geology.smu.edu/~dpa-www/sqm/index.html

 

Tibuleac, I. M., E. T. Herrin, James Britton, R. G. Shymway and A. C. Rosca, (2003), Automatic  of secondary phase arrivals using wavelet transforms, in press at Seis. Res. Lett.

 

Bonner, J. L., Harkrider, D., Herrin, E. T., S. Rusell, R. Shumway, I.M. Tibuleac and D. Reiter, (2002) Evaluation of short-period, near-regional Ms scales for the Nevada Test Site, in press at Bull. Seis. Soc. Am.

 

Ghent, R. R. and I. M. Tibuleac, (2002), Ribbon spacing in Venusian tessera: Implications for layer thickness and thermal state, Geophys. Res. Lett., 29, No. 20, 2000, 61-1-4.

 

Tibuleac, I. M, E.T. Herrin and Petru Negraru, (2001), Calibration Studies at NVAR, Seis. Res. Lett., 72, 754.

 

Tibuleac, I. M. and E.T. Herrin, (2000), Location Capability at NVAR (Mina,Nevada) Seismic Array for Events on the Nevada Test Site, Seismological Research Letters, 72, 97 - 107

 

Tibuleac, I. M. and E.T. Herrin, (1999), Lower Mantle Heterogeneity Beneath the Caribbean Sea, Science, 285, 1711 - 1715.

 

Tibuleac, I. M. and E.T. Herrin, (1999), "An Automatic Method for Determination of Lg Arrival Times Using Wavelet Methods", Seis. Res. Lett., 70, 577 - 595.

 

Tibuleac, I. M. and Herrin, E, (1997), Calibration Studies at TXAR, Seis. Res. Lett., 68, 353-365.

 

 

Selected Abstracts

 

Britton, J. M., D. B. Harris, I. M. Tibuleac and J. L. Bonner, (2003), Detection of mining explosions for a Southern Asia seismic database, 25’th Seismic Research Review – Nuclear Explosion Monitoring: Building the Knowledge Base, Tucson, AZ, 211-219.

 

Leidig, M., D. Reiter, J. Bonner, S. Johnson, I. Tibuleac, A. Rodgers, and H. Hooper,(2003), DE. evelopment of SSLOC3D:  A tool for single-station locations of small sesmic events using regional 3D velocity models, 25th Seismic Research Review, Tucson, AZ, 237-247, 2003. 

Golden P., Bonner, J., Herrin, E. T, I. M. Tibuleac, Ileana, Swanson, J., Sorrels,G., Hayward, C., Stump, B., and Anderson, D., (1999), Installation of the Mina, Nevada, Seismic and Acoustic Arrays, in Proceedings of the 21'st Seismic Research Symposium: Technologies for Monitoring the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty, 21 - 24 September 1999, Las Vegas, Nevada, 1, 438 - 448

 

Herrin E. T., Bonner, J., Golden P., Hayward, C., Sorrells, G., Swanson, J., Tibuleac, I.,M. (1998),

"Reducing False Alarms with Seismo-Acustic Synergy", Proceedings of the 20-th Annual Seismic Research Symposium on Monitoring a Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty, 21-23 September 1998, pp. 580-589.

 

"Anomalous behavior of the seismicity parameters before large earthquakes in Vrancea Region, Romania", presented at the Second International Workshop in Statistical Seismology, 1-5 June 1993, Cephallonia, Greece

 

Selected Technical Reports

Bonner J., Sarah Deering, Tao Liu, Swanson J. and Ileana Tibuleac, Seismic and acoustic data observations at TXAR, January 1997.

 

E.T., Herrin, E., Burlacu, V., Tibuleac, I. M., Hayward, C., Bonner, J., Golden, P., and Sorrels, G., (1995), Seismo-Acoustic Synergy, in Herrin, E., Golden, P., and Robertson, E., Eds., Design, Evaluation, and Construction of TEXESS and LUXESS, and research in mini-array technology and use of data from single stations and sparse networks: phase V, SMU Scientific Report No. 5, 41-71.