James Byerlee

1927 - 2015

Dr. James D. Byerlee

Aug 12,1927 - Apr 17, 2015

James received a Bachelor of Science and First Class Honors from the Univ. of Queensland, a PhD in Geology from the Massachusetts Inst. of Technology. He spent most of his professional career at the US Geological Survey, National Center for Earthquake Research in Menlo Park. As a research scientist, James developed a world-renowned laboratory where he studied the mechanics of earthquakes and faulting and measured physical properties of rocks at high pressure. He is best known professionally for Byerlee's Law that predicts the frictional strength of rocks in the Earth's crust. Byerlee's Law has been used extensively by geophysicists for nearly 40 years to estimate the build up of forces before earthquakes and to understand the distribution of stress in the crust. James was a Fellow of the American Geophysical Union and collaborated regularly with scientists from the United States and from around the world, including cooperative research programs with Japan, China and Russia. His family wishes to thank the staff at Silverado and later Palm Villa's for their love and care of James during his years battling dementia. We would also like to thank Patrica Maxwell and staff at Maxwell Senior Care Service. James is survived by his wife Merle, his children David, Ian, Madonna and grandchildren Ava, Lydia, Ethan, Michaela and James, who all reside in his native Australia.
May he rest in peace.