Earthquakes

[Randy]

Earthquakes are caused by movements of plates underneath the Earth's surface. The places where these plates meet are breaks in the Earth's crust called faults. Earthquakes often happen when these plates along the faults move in different directions. These shifting plates create energy that is called seismic waves. These waves move outward just like waves that are formed by a disturbance in a body of water (picture the rings in a lake when you throw in a pebble).

There are different types of seismic waves. Body waves travel underneath the Earth's surface, through solids, liquids and gas. Primary body waves are the fastest. When they reach the surface they become surface waves, and they continue to travel above the ground. Secondary body waves come right after the primary waves and don't reach the surface. Surface waves are the slowest waves. They cause the most intense vibrations and damage at the end of an earthquake.

Have you ever been in a bad one? What happened?

 

[Jazzy]

Never been in a bad one. I did experience the after shock of mild earthquake last year. The house shook a little and plates in my dining room hutch rolled on the shelves. Some of the pictures on the walls were crooked. Nothing broke but it is a very strange feeling when your house moves.

 

[Evil Eye]

I've never been in a noticeable earthquake. Which is pretty normal around here

 

[DrLeftover]

Experienced, yes. Most recently the one in Virginia a couple of years ago. Before that, several of the New Madrid and Wabash Fault System tremors once in awhile when I was younger.

"bad", no.

 

[Nebulous's iconNebulous]

Ive been in a couple but nothing too major. Just enough to shake stuff off the shelves.

 

[DrLeftover]

This is a good one.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VwOuS0fbqVs

 

[Raven]

Only had one expirence a few years ago. I was fast asleep and something woke me up, I actually thought a plane had crashed (we live right near an airport) Shook me out of bed.

We don't really get them in England.

 

[DrLeftover]

Only had one expirence a few years ago. I was fast asleep and something woke me up, I actually thought a plane had crashed (we live right near an airport) Shook me out of bed.

We don't really get them in England.

Oh?

http://www.earthquakes.bgs.ac.uk/earthquakes/recent_uk_events.html

 

[Raven]

"1994/02/15 10:15:58.9 52.5590 0.9132 7.3 4.0 NORWICH,NORFOLK " oh look! my city... Don't remember that one.

I mean't big ones. Sure there are earthquakes in England, but not massive ones.

 

[DrLeftover]

Since it is seismically active, there is a possibility that things might get interesting without warning at some point.

 

[Argon]

I haven't been in a bad one, but still one night when I was sleeping earthquake came and I fell from my bed. I had a small head injury.

 

[Jazzy]

I haven't been in a bad one, but still one night when I was sleeping earthquake came and I fell from my bed. I had a small head injury.

Good grief, what a rude awakening that must have been. Glad you on suffered a small head injury.

 

[DrLeftover]

Well, damn

Tectonic Summary
This earthquake occurred within seconds after a routine explosion at a quarry; the location determined with seismographic data is not significantly different from the location of the quarry. The event was initially interpreted by the USGS National Earthquake Information Center as the seismic signature of the quarry blast. Following consultation with additional seismological experts, quarry operators and technical consultants, and on the basis of examination of records obtained at the quarry, the USGS National Earthquake Information Center has concluded that the quarry blast itself was too small to account for the signals recorded by the regional seismographic network. The regionally recorded seismic event that was felt in the Chicago area corresponds to a release of tectonic strain at shallow depth, at or very near to the quarry, that happened about seven seconds after the quarry blast.

http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/usb000ksfx#summary

 

[Sinon]

Supposedly a few have occurred in my area. Never noticed them though, since they were really low-level.

 

[Nebulous's iconNebulous]

Supposedly a few have occurred in my area. Never noticed them though, since they were really low-level.

Yeah they are happening all the time on a small unnoticeable scale.

 

[DrLeftover]

Yellowstone:

3 June

Seismographs have picked up a swarm of earthquakes in the northwestern corner of Yellowstone National Park, including dozens early Tuesday.

The University of Utah Seismograph Station reported five small earthquakes including those with magnitudes of 3.4, 2.7 and 3.2 in a 20-minute period starting at 3:33 a.m. in an area 16 to 18 miles south of Gardiner.

Earthquake information specialist Paul Roberson said there were another 20 to 30 small quakes Tuesday morning that hadn't yet been posted on the university's website. He called it a fairly normal swarm for Yellowstone. He didn't expect there to be any damage.

Seismographs recorded 31 quakes in the same area south of Gardiner on Saturday, while another 23 were reported last Wednesday and Thursday in an area between 18 and 19 miles east-southeast of West Yellowstone.

http://trib.com/news/state-and-regional/swarm-of-earthquakes-in-yellowstone-park/article_03358bb5-5238-5ecc-8b7d-50862b6892e8.html

 

[DrLeftover]

23 June

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A local tsunami warning was issued after an 8.0 magnitude earthquake struck in the Pacific Ocean west of Alaska's Aleutian Islands on Monday, the U.S. Geological Survey and the National Tsunami Warning Center said.

The warning covered coastal areas of Alaska from Nikolski to Attu, the center said, adding the level of tsunami danger was being evaluated for other U.S. and Canadian Pacific coasts.

The quake struck about 14 miles (23 km) southeast of Little Sitkin Island, Alaska, at a depth of about 71 miles (114 km), USGS said.

http://news.yahoo.com/local-tsunami-warning-issued-quake-hits-off-alaskas-213927220.html;_ylt=AwrBEiEUoKhTgzUAfuHQtDMD

 

[Dee]

Growing up in southern California meant we experienced a lot of earthquakes, mainly small ones, but I was in the Northridge earthquake in 1994. I believe it was a 6.7 on the Richter scale, and it caused lots of deaths but more injuries. We're in Oregon, though, right now, so we don't get many earthquakes up here. But if and when they do happen, they're usually of the larger kind or we have earthquakes happening around us--like in Alaska--and get tsunami warnings.

 

[damgaard]

I never been in any.. I live in Europe, we haven't got ane earthquakes here

 

[DrLeftover]

I guess it depends on where you're at in Europe.

24 days ago 4.3 magnitude, 10 km depth
Cheb, Karlovarsky kraj, Czech Republic

Europe has had: (M1.5 or greater)

0 earthquakes today
2 earthquakes in the past 7 days
16 earthquakes in the past month
266 earthquakes in the past year


The largest earthquake in Europe:

this week: 4.1 in Livno, Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bosnia And Herzegovina
this month: 5.1 in Réthimnon, Rethimni, Greece
this year: 6.9 in Alexandroúpoli, Evros, Greece

http://earthquaketrack.com/v/europe/recent