From El Paso to Alaska: UTEP’s Diane Doser Leaves a Lasting Mark on Earthquake Science 

October 2025
By Sandra Ramirez, ’08, ’21

The most powerful earthquake in Texas happened a little more than 150 miles away from El Paso. The magnitude 6.5 quake struck in 1931, but retired University of Texas at El Paso professor Diane Doser says her research shows El Paso consistently experiences significant seismic activity.  

“We do have a fault that runs along the eastern side of the Franklin mountains,” Doser said. “That fault has moved in the last 20,000 years or so, so there is some evidence that there are even larger earthquakes — probably magnitude sevens or so — to get the amount of movement that we see on that fault.” 

According to Doser, an earthquake of that magnitude in an urbanized area could be devastating. Her work in El Paso focused on the structure of basins, explaining that the depth of the basin can influence how strongly it is felt in some areas.  

Doser’s expertise includes earthquake studies in East Africa, Russia, and New Zealand. Much of her work has been conducted in Alaska, where large earthquakes from the 1950s and 1960s are providing valuable information when it comes to plans for new infrastructure.  

“If they decide to do more mining or more development of oil and gas fields — say in Alaska — they're going to build more roads and pipelines, what are the earthquake hazards associated with those kinds of facilities?” Doser said.  

That information could help with plans for wastewater ponds. Doser said preparing for earthquakes can help ensure infrastructure withstands seismic events and prevent toxic spills or environmental damage.  

Now retired, the professor emerita spends her time picking berries and hiking in Alaska while staying connected to her field. She reads the latest studies, serves on a committee for a UTEP doctoral student, and is still doing some of her own research. 

She is counting on the next generation to recognize the importance of El Paso’s geology.  

“Even if we don't have a lot of earthquakes and volcanoes, there's still other things like groundwater, landslides, flooding,” Doser said. “Those are all things that relate to the geology of the area and those are things that will impact us there in the future.”