Yajing Liu, McGill University

Research

fault mechanics megathrust earthquakes oceanic transform faults earthquake source physics slow slip events induced seismicity Earthquake source process Rupture dynamics

Latest papers

Predictable seismic cycles result from structural rupture barriers on oceanic transform faults.
Science (New York, N.Y.) · 2026
Elevated in-situ Vp/Vs preceding hydraulic-fracturing-induced earthquakes.
Communications earth & environment · 2026
Methane Emissions from Non-producing Oil and Gas Wells and the Potential Role of Seismic Activity: A Case Study in Northeast British Columbia, Canada.
Environmental science & technology · 2023

All 6 publications

Latest funding

Earthquake and aseismic creep source processes
NSERC · 2024 · Principal investigator
$68,000
Earthquake Seismology
NSERC · 2023 · Principal investigator
$50,000
Earthquake monitoring, whale tracking and sedimentary geochemistry of the Lower St. Lawrence Seaway
NSERC · 2023 · Principal investigator
$319,631

All 11 grants and awards

6 publications.

01

Predictable seismic cycles result from structural rupture barriers on oceanic transform faults.

Gong J, Fan W, McGuire JJ, Behn MD, Warren JM, Roland E, Boettcher MS, Collins JA, Liu Y, German CR

Science (New York, N.Y.)2026

DOI: 10.1126/science.ady6190 PMID: 42133771

02

Elevated in-situ Vp/Vs preceding hydraulic-fracturing-induced earthquakes.

Xu J, Liu Y, Li J, Roth MP, Harrington RM, He Y

Communications earth & environment2026

DOI: 10.1038/s43247-026-03690-x PMID: 42666200

03

Methane Emissions from Non-producing Oil and Gas Wells and the Potential Role of Seismic Activity: A Case Study in Northeast British Columbia, Canada.

Pozzobon C, Liu Y, Kirkpatrick JD, Chesnaux R, Kang M

Environmental science & technology2023

DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.3c06062 PMID: 38085536

04

Fluid-injection-induced earthquakes characterized by hybrid-frequency waveforms manifest the transition from aseismic to seismic slip.

Yu H, Harrington RM, Kao H, Liu Y, Wang B

Nature communications2021

DOI: 10.1038/s41467-021-26961-x PMID: 34824197

05

Cascadia megathrust earthquake rupture model constrained by geodetic fault locking.

Li D, Liu Y

Philosophical transactions. Series A, Mathematical, physical, and engineering sciences2021Senior author

DOI: 10.1098/rsta.2020.0135 PMID: 33715408

06

Aseismic transient slip on the Gofar transform fault, East Pacific Rise.

Liu Y, McGuire JJ, Behn MD

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America2020First author

DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1913625117 PMID: 32345716

Earthquake and aseismic creep source processes

Principal investigatorNSERC2024Discovery Grants Program - Individual

Principal investigators: Liu, Yajing

Keywords: earthquake source mechanism; fault friction; seismic and aseismic slip; oceanic transform faults; induced earthquakes; dynamic rupture simulation; megathrust earthquakes; foreshocks and seismic swarms; ocean soundscape

$68,000

Earthquake Seismology

Principal investigatorNSERC2023Canada Research Chairs

Principal investigators: Liu, Yajing

Keywords: Earthquake source process; Fault mechanics; Rupture dynamics; Seismic hazard; Aseismic slip; Environmental seismology

$50,000

Earthquake monitoring, whale tracking and sedimentary geochemistry of the Lower St. Lawrence Seaway

Principal investigatorNSERC2023Discovery Grants Program - Ship Time

Principal investigators: Liu, Yajing Y

Keywords: geoacoustics; marine geology; marine mammal behavior; marine seismology; sedimentary geochemistry

$319,631

Earthquake Seismology

Principal investigatorNSERC2019Canada Research Chairs

Principal investigators: Liu, Yajing

Keywords: earthquake source physics; fault mechanics; slow slip events; megathrust earthquakes; oceanic transform faults; induced seismicity

$410,000

Earthquake Seismology

Principal investigatorNSERC2019Canada Research Chairs

Principal investigators: Liu, Yajing

$70,000

Earthquake Seismology

Principal investigatorNSERC2019Canada Research Chairs

Principal investigators: Liu, Yajing

$120,000

Earthquake source processes of natural and anthropogenic origins

Principal investigatorNSERC2018Discovery Grants Program - Accelerator Supplements

Principal investigators: Liu, Yajing

$120,000

Earthquake source processes of natural and anthropogenic origins

Principal investigatorNSERC2018Discovery Grants Program - Individual

Principal investigators: Liu, Yajing

$366,000

Induced earthquake source process imaging and groundwater chemistry monitoring in the Western Canada*sedimentary basin

Principal investigatorNSERC2016Strategic Projects - Group

Principal investigators: Liu, Yajing

$676,955

Initial contact with Progress Energy on geomechanical modeling of induced seismicity

Principal investigatorNSERC2014Interaction Grants Program

Principal investigators: Liu, Yajing

$3,324

From CIHR, NSERC and SSHRC funding decisions: CIHR since 2008, NSERC since 1991 and SSHRC since 1998, including their latest published competition results.

Frequent collaborators

Earth and Planetary Sciences
School of Earth and Ocean Sciences
Civil Engineering and Applied Mechanics

Co-authors at McGill University, colored by department. Thicker lines mean more shared papers; select anyone to open their profile and their own map.

Honn Kao

School of Earth and Ocean Sciences

1 shared papers, latest 2021

Mary Kang

Civil Engineering and Applied Mechanics

1 shared papers, latest 2023

Write to this professor

A short, specific email works best. This draft uses one of their recent papers; replace the parts in brackets with your own details before sending.

Applying for

Paper to mentionMention their NSERC grant from 2024

Subject: Prospective PhD student: fault mechanics Dear Professor Liu, My name is [your name], and I am a [your current degree or role] at [your institution]. I am applying for a PhD position starting in [term and year]. I read your paper "Predictable seismic cycles result from structural rupture barriers on oceanic transform faults." (2026), and it connects closely to my own work on [your research topic]. [One or two sentences on what you did and what you learned.] I also saw your NSERC-funded project "Earthquake and aseismic creep source processes" (2024), and I would be glad to contribute to work in that direction. Are you accepting new PhD students for [term and year]? I have attached my CV and transcripts, and I would be glad to talk at a time that suits you. Thank you for your time. Kind regards, [your name]