Data for: Sparse Ambient Resonance Measurements Reveal Dynamic Properties of Freestanding Rock Arches

The dynamic properties of freestanding rock landforms are a function of fundamental material and mechanical parameters, facilitating non-invasive vibration-based structural assessment. Characterization of resonant frequencies, mode shapes, and damping ratios, however, can be challenging at culturally-sensitive geologic features, such as rock arches, where physical access is limited. Using sparse ambient vibration measurements, we describe three resonant modes between 1 and 40 Hz for 17 natural arches in Utah spanning a range of lengths from 3 – 88 m. Modal polarization data are evaluated to combine field observations with 3-D numerical models. We find outcrop-scale elastic moduli vary from 0.8 to 8.0 GPa, correlated with diagenetic processes, and identify low damping at all sites. Dense-array cross-correlation results from an additional arch validate predictions of simple bending modes and fixed boundary conditions. Our results establish use of sparse ambient resonance measurements for structural assessment and monitoring of arches and similar freestanding geologic features.

Data and Resources

Field Value
Contact Email paul.geimer@utah.edu
Date Created 2015-01-01; 2019-01-01
Funding National Science Foundation
Hive Date Modified 2026-07-20T20:15:23.642474+00:00
Hive Date Uploaded 2026-06-19T02:17:11.441301+00:00
Languages English
License Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial 3.0 Unported (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/)
Old Hive ID bg257f05g
Parent ID xtt65-55d89
Publication Date 2020-01-13
Publisher The Hive: University of Utah Research Data Repository
Resource Type Dataset
Resource URL https://hive.utah.edu/records/xtt65-55d89
Subjects geological engineering
Version 1
ndp_creator_md5 c28ceb2036e404504d019148adef79c9
ndp_group_id J. Willard Marriott Library
ndp_user_id 3383da5ae47ae984
Groups
  • NSF
  • United States
Tags
  • NSF
  • United States
  • geological-engineering
isopen True
license_id other-open
license_title Other (Open)
metadata_created 2026-10-30T17:19:52.425252
metadata_modified 2026-10-30T17:19:52.425257
notes The dynamic properties of freestanding rock landforms are a function of fundamental material and mechanical parameters, facilitating non-invasive vibration-based structural assessment. Characterization of resonant frequencies, mode shapes, and damping ratios, however, can be challenging at culturally-sensitive geologic features, such as rock arches, where physical access is limited. Using sparse ambient vibration measurements, we describe three resonant modes between 1 and 40 Hz for 17 natural arches in Utah spanning a range of lengths from 3 – 88 m. Modal polarization data are evaluated to combine field observations with 3-D numerical models. We find outcrop-scale elastic moduli vary from 0.8 to 8.0 GPa, correlated with diagenetic processes, and identify low damping at all sites. Dense-array cross-correlation results from an additional arch validate predictions of simple bending modes and fixed boundary conditions. Our results establish use of sparse ambient resonance measurements for structural assessment and monitoring of arches and similar freestanding geologic features.
num_resources 21
num_tags 3
title Data for: Sparse Ambient Resonance Measurements Reveal Dynamic Properties of Freestanding Rock Arches