Increasing earthquake activity

[Canuke]

All of this is just to say that I'd rather live in an earthquake zone as opposed to a tornado or hurricane zone.

Daniel

There are limits to how big a quake you can economically build for, and "building" is an option for so few who live in the California cities even for those with money. If you rent.... well, you better know how to research building construction and fault maps.

I would imagine that building for hurricanes and tornadoes should be easier, for small buildings at least; just build into the ground. Hurricanes won't touch you there. Can't say the same for an earthquake, unless you live in a balloon.

You also get warnings and probabilities with weather; your preparations can be localized. By the time you know a quake's coming, it's here - so the likelihood of being caught in a bad place (like the effing men's room!) and/or away from loved ones is annoyingly uncontrollable.

I say all this knowing that I have a high likelihood of getting a job offer in Los Angeles. What a thread to browse knowing that

 

[luxxlightsaber]

The end of this system of things is very close this earthquake activity is prophetic. And that is a irrefutable fact. Great earth quakes in one place after the other!! Read it research it meditate on it and don't blow it off!!

 

[StarHalo]

Oklahoma has had 207 3.0-magnitude earthquakes this year, compared to California's 140. Hope you Midwesterners have those water heaters and bookshelves strapped..

 

[Hooked on Fenix]

Looks like we got some decent quakes recently:
6/19/14 Vanuatu 6.4
6/23/14 New Zealand 6.9
6/23/14 New Zealand 6.3
6/23/14 Alaska 7.9
6/24/14 Alaska 6.6

I'm curious if the 7.9 off the coast in Alaska will cause a tsunami or not. I'm also wondering if it's large enough to cause increased activity around the Ring of Fire. Alaska and California have seemed to be the most active recently. I'm hoping California isn't next as we are overdue for a big one.

 

[Hooked on Fenix]

Looks like the Alaska earthquake had a tsunami of only up to 0.7 feet. That's a relief. However, there appears to be more large quakes developing around the Ring of Fire. On one earthquake map, I see a 7.2 off the coast of Tonga and a 7.0 next to it off the coast of New Zealand. These may only be preliminary magnitudes. I haven't been able to confirm these quakes on other websites yet. Since they are off the coast, unless they cause tsunamis, they won't be a big deal for news stations to cover. Several 5s have popped up as well, half a dozen are off the coast of Japan. Activity seems to be picking up.

Edit:
It seems as though the 6.9 and 6.3 in my last post in New Zealand were probably the 7.2 and 7.0 in Tonga and New Zealand and occurred before the Alaska quake . These quakes were downgraded by the USGS to the lower magnitudes. Apparently, the 6.9 off the coast of New Zealand and Tonga came right before the 7.9 in Alaska. These two quakes were on polar opposites of the Ring of Fire and it has been suggested that this is not a coincidence (the first quake made the second more likely to occur).

 

[Hooked on Fenix]

Looks like we got a few more decent sized quakes:
6/29/14 Japan 6.2
6/29/14 Visokoi Island 6.9
6/29/14 Utufua 6.8
6/29/14 Utufua 6.2

There also seems to be some more activity along the North American Craton. Within the last day, we got a 4.3 in Sinaloa, Mexico, a 5.2 along the border of Arizona and New Mexico, and a 4.6 in Utah. All these quakes are pretty much lined up north to south.

 

[Poppy]

I really don't know much about quakes, but does an increase in small quakes predict an increased likelihood of a LARGE one? OR;
can a bunch of smaller quakes relieve some stress, so that a LARGE quake is less likely?

OR... an increase in small quakes, means nothing other than there is evidence that the Earth's mantel/continents are still moving.

 

[StarHalo]

does an increase in small quakes predict an increased likelihood of a LARGE one?

It's like a coin flip or roulette; each new day is a 50/50 chance regardless of the previous day.

 

[Hooked on Fenix]

I really don't know much about quakes, but does an increase in small quakes predict an increased likelihood of a LARGE one? OR;
can a bunch of smaller quakes relieve some stress, so that a LARGE quake is less likely?

OR... an increase in small quakes, means nothing other than there is evidence that the Earth's mantel/continents are still moving.

Yes.

 

[orbital]

+

Earthquakes aren't increasing,, the availability of earthquake data, is.



____________________________________________________________

 

[Hooked on Fenix]

Out of the 12 worldwide earthquakes that were 6.0 or above in magnitude in June, 4 of them occurred today alone.

 

[Chauncey Gardiner]

Out of the 12 worldwide earthquakes that were 6.0 or above in magnitude in June, 4 of them occurred today alone.

Conclusions? Speculations? What does it mean? Is it important for someone in North America to know what's happened in Asia, earthquake wise? Will knowing cause them to take action to be better prepared?

~ Chance

 

[orbital]

+

The entire west coast of the US has a good 90% chance of a 7+ earthquake anywhere between this afternoon & 20 years from now.
There is no 'I told you so' with earthquakes,, they will happen.

West coast US is a strike slip fault complex, so it will not be the enormous subduction zone quake of say Japan
The only issue is architecture & infrastructure to deal with it,,, like say Japan

California will have massive damage ($) in their next big quake,,
then they will cry to the gov.* to pay for it.

That's precicely why nothing is being done now,, it's a waiting game.



*other taxpayers

 

[Hooked on Fenix]

There was a 4.6 quake near Big Bear, CA July 5 and a 6.9 quake in Puerto Madero, Mexico today. These quakes are getting a little closer to home. Chauncey, it is important for someone in North America to take notice of the earthquakes happening in Asia. What happens on one side of the Ring of Fire can put pressure on the other side of the Ring of Fire. We saw this with the 6.9 in Tonga right before the 7.9 in Alaska. This doesn't always happen. Sometimes a quake for one reason or another will not cause more quakes. Sometimes the quakes will cause others rotating around the Ring of Fire such as after the 9.0 Japan quake. However, the fact that the West coast of the U.S. has had minor quakes compared to everywhere else along the Ring of Fire means that pressure is building up for the big one. California will have a large earthquake. It's not a matter of if, but when.

 

[PCC]

Was woken up by a significant earthquake about ten minutes ago. Quakefeed shows it as a 5.7 centered a few miles south of Sonoma. The shaking lasted about 10 to 15 seconds but seemed to shake for longer. Not a violent shaking, just the whole house shaking from side to side for a long time, longer than the 'i89 Loma Prieta earthquake from what I remember of that event.

<Edit> Just checked Quakefeed again and it's been upgraded to a 6.0. My main worry is that this was a pre-shock to something bigger.

 

[jonnyfgroove]

Was woken up by a significant earthquake about ten minutes ago. Quakefeed shows it as a 5.7 centered a few miles south of Sonoma. The shaking lasted about 10 to 15 seconds but seemed to shake for longer. Not a violent shaking, just the whole house shaking from side to side for a long time, longer than the 'i89 Loma Prieta earthquake from what I remember of that event.

<Edit> Just checked Quakefeed again and it's been upgraded to a 6.0. My main worry is that this was a pre-shock to something bigger.

That was the largest quake I've ever experienced. Hopefully you are wrong about something bigger in the near future.

 

[mudcamper]

<Edit> Just checked Quakefeed again and it's been upgraded to a 6.0. My main worry is that this was a pre-shock to something bigger.

USGS gives a 54% chance of an aftershock as large as 5.0 within 7 days. And only a 5% to 10% chance for a quake larger than the main quake within the next 7 days.

(And it woke me up also.)

 

[Hooked on Fenix]

I heard there were some injuries, but no deaths so far with that quake. Some gas lines broken, houses caught on fire, and road closures though. I think the biggest loss will be from the expensive wine bottles damaged or destroyed from the shaking. Many people in the area don't have earthquake insurance which could be really bad for the wineries in Napa Valley. I hope this quake isn't a foreshock for something larger. With the recent pattern of larger earthquakes rotating around the Ring of Fire, I wouldn't be surprised if the next large quake came from southern California or northern Mexico rather than in the same area. Let's just hope that quake released enough pressure to lower the risk of more quakes for the immediate future.

 

[StarHalo]

"The Napa Quake", largest in Cali in 25 years, but still no earthquake fatalities in the state for over twenty years..

 

[mudcamper]

Many people in the area don't have earthquake insurance which could be really bad for the wineries in Napa Valley

Almost nobody ever gets earthquake insurance. It's one of those things that insurance companies don't like to insure, so they set the rates far beyond affordability. It's odd, given that strong earthquakes are an extremely rare probability event, and damage or injury from them is practically statistically undetectable. People who don't live in CA tend to over-dramatize earthquakes. I've lived here for 47 years, and have only felt 3 quakes.