Science Happy Hour: Volcanoes, Earthquakes, and Tsunamis...Oh My!

Name: Science Happy Hour: Volcanoes, Earthquakes, and Tsunamis...Oh My!
Start: 2025-10-08T17:30:00-05:00
End: 2025-10-08T19:00:00-05:00
Location: 5801 W 135th St, Overland Park, KS, United States, Kansas 66223

Schedule

Wed Oct 08 2025 at 05:30 pm to 07:00 pm

UTC-05:00

Location

5801 W 135th St, Overland Park, KS, United States, Kansas 66223 | Overland Park, KS

The Earth Shook. The Ocean Answered.
On July 29, an 8.8-magnitude earthquake ripped through the seafloor off Russia’s Kamchatka Peninsula, unleashing tsunami warnings across the Pacific — reaching as far south as Santiago, Chile. It stands as the largest earthquake ever recorded in human history.
What forces unleashed such unimaginable power beneath our feet? And more importantly — could it happen again?
Join us for an eye-opening presentation with renowned geologist Dr. Allen Macfarlane as he takes us deep inside the science, the mystery, and the future of our restless planet.
Don’t miss this unforgettable journey into the Earth’s most powerful forces.
Dr. Macfarlane received his undergraduate degree in geological engineering from the Colorado School of Mines in 1970. Rather than following a career in industry, Allen attended the University of Northern Colorado to complete the education coursework needed to become a middle school science teacher. His career in teaching was postponed by a stint in the US Navy. Following his service, he enrolled as a graduate student in the Geology program to seek a Master’s degree from the University of Kansas. During this time he was a research assistant employed in the Environmental Geology Section of the Kansas Geological Survey. Upon completion of his Master’s, his first job was as a hydrologist working in the Public Water Supply Section of the US EPA in the Kansas City regional office. A year later he was hired as a research scientist in the Geohydrology Section of the Kansas Geological Survey where he completed a 34 year career working on the State’s water challenges. In 1993 Allen received his Doctorate in Environmental Health Science from KU. He has done field research in many of the 105 counties in Kansas and in adjacent areas of Missouri, Oklahoma, and Colorado and has enjoyed collaborating in research with colleagues from the US and other parts of the world. Following retirement from the Survey in 2010, Allen became a middle school science teacher at Topeka Collegiate. He organized field trips for the purpose of giving students the opportunity to explore natural Kansas.
He retired from Collegiate in 2017 and shortly thereafter became an education consultant for the Museum at Prairiefire, where he currently works remotely from home. Prior to the pandemic, he wrote educational materials for and presented activities to students in the JAM after school program and wrote teacher educational pieces in support of the Museum’s exhibitions. Some of his latest work has been to collect research materials in support of the upcoming Kansas Revealed exhibit.
Wednesday, October 8th
Doors open at 5:30 PM for Happy Hour drinks
Talk begins at 6PM
Tickets are FREE for members and $10 for non-members