When winds blow, does the earth quake?When winds blow, does the earth quake Quake - A string-oriented language designed to support the construction of Modula-3 programs from modules, interfaces and libraries. Written by Stephen Harrison of DEC SRC, 1993. ? Unusual air pressure patterns off the coast of California may trigger some of the numerous moderate-size earthquakes in this state, according to according to prep. 1. As stated or indicated by; on the authority of: according to historians. 2. In keeping with: according to instructions. 3. a controversial report by a meteorologist who has been studying West Coast weather for several decades. If true, this finding may help seismologists predict months in advance the likelihood of earthquakes during certain atmospheric conditions. As evidence for the pressure-earthquake connection, Jerome Namias Jerome Namias (* March 19 1910; † February 10 1997) was a U.S. meteorologist, whose research included El Niño. Namias was born in Bridgeport, Connecticut and grew up in Fall River, Massachusetts. of the Scripps Institutions of Oceanography oceanography, study of the seas and oceans. The major divisions of oceanography include the geological study of the ocean floor (see plate tectonics) and features; physical oceanography, which is concerned with the physical attributes of the ocean water, such as in La Jolla La Jolla (lə hoi`yə), on the Pacific Ocean, S Calif., an uninc. district within the confines of San Diego; founded 1869. The beautiful ocean beaches, in particular La Jolla shores and Black's Beach, and sea-washed caves attract visitors and , Calif., has found that California earthquakes are often preceded months in advance by persistent patterns of air pressure several hundred miles off the coast. Although he first noted this association more than 30 years ago, Namias only now has reported on the subject, in the April GEOPHYSICAL ge·o·phys·ics n. (used with a sing. verb) The physics of the earth and its environment, including the physics of fields such as meteorology, oceanography, and seismology. RESEARCH LETTER. In the past, seismologists have rejected outright the idea of any relationship, says Namias, and this criticism had kept him from raising the idea. While most earthquake experts remain highly skeptical, some have recently become more receptive to the possibility that patterns of air pressure may have some effect, he says. Namias' paper reports on two series of southern California Southern California, also colloquially known as SoCal, is the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Centered on the cities of Los Angeles and San Diego, Southern California is home to nearly 24 million people and is the nation's second most populated region, quakes--in July 1986 and October 1987. For a month to six weeks before the seismic activity, large, recurring patterns of high pressure developed off the coast. These pressure systems were much stronger than normal, says Namias. "In my experience, and judging from the large values and gradients, it seems unlikely that this correspondence is due to chance," he says. Seismologists have long contended that air pressure has no effect on faults. And although he has faith in the association, Namias lacks a theory to explain how pressure patterns might indirectly trigger the release of stress built up along faults. He speculates, however, that pressure systems may generate winds or changes in sea level that could indirectly set off quakes. |
|
||||||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion