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Is This The Big One?

Posted by timothy on from the shaky-ground dept.

Quivering Coward writes "There has been a marked increase in seismic activity in southern California in the past several days," pointing to this map from Caltech Earthquake Net, including a 5.2 and 3.6 this morning (2004/06/15). "Could this be the big one? Is 'the big one' ever going to happen? NASA is doing their part to predict the future of Earthquakes."

9 of 151 comments (clear)

  1. Science Fiction can inform us by justanyone · · Score: 3, Interesting


    I read a really cool sci-fi story once where there was a big earthquake coming, everybody believed it and moved east of the line (into Nevada) and waited.

    The big day came, the earthquake happened, and ... it was the Eastern part that fell into the ocean. The western sliver remained, newborn cliffs towering above a freshly minted surf far below, having swallowed the rest of the U.S.

    Maybe those of us in Chicago ought to have life rafts, too (grin).

    -- Kevin Rice

    --
    Unitarian Church: Freethinkers Congregate!
    1. Re:Science Fiction can inform us by sadler121 · · Score: 5, Interesting

      Maybe those of us in Chicago ought to have life rafts...

      Though this is a joke, one musten forget the The New Madrid Fault Line, and how many geologists believe that a "big one" could eminate from there, causing much more damage, seeing that buildings in the midwest aren't as "earth quake" proof as those in the west.

  2. Yep, any day now. By which I mean next 100000 days by Retric · · Score: 1, Interesting

    Could this be the big one? Is 'the big one' ever going to happen?

    Look earthquakes can and do happen. But as to the 'Big One' idea well I hate to be the one to point this out but the reason why that area is above sea level is because it floats so no earthquake can change that fact or sink it. As to moving out in the ocean yea it's going to happen but You me, our kids, our grand kids and our great great great great grand kids are going to be dead before that strip of land moves one mile from where it stand. And it's going to be a LONG time before 'the big one' that takes the last part of California out into the ocean.

    As to these earth quakes prediction a large earthquake well if you keep saying it's going to happen your going to be correct once and wrong 1000's of times. I think we are going to see a 6.8 +/- .1 some time between March 26, 2005 and March 28, 20005. So yea I am going to be correct but is that useful... sure if your building something but as to taking a vacation to miss an earthquake well I suggest moving.

  3. So what? by dacarr · · Score: 4, Interesting
    It's an earthquake. BFD. Yes, during Northridge, it levelled an apartment building, knocked over a freeway interchange ramp or two, and toppled the big screen at Anaheim Stadium, but that was really it. The damage and death toll for that six pointer was trivial. And ten years ago, I heard it predicted by seismologists that there would be a 50/50 chance of a major earthquake hitting within the next thirty years.

    I mean, come on, people, are we expecting The Big One to cause the entire state of California to break away at its borders, and we start floating around the Pacific Ocean in some sort of bad remake of Space:1999, with Arnold Schwarzenneger in charge of Earth Base California or something?

    --
    This sig no verb.
  4. Re:Run by cluckshot · · Score: 5, Interesting

    You might have a day or two left but well the Lunar Land tides maxed on June 3 and they do it again on July 1. The orbital max differential occurred on June 15 for apogee and will max for Paragee on July 1. I suppose with all the other data we see a high probablility of Earthquake as the moon approaches the close approach on July 1.

    The time to be concerned is when the moon is at 45 Deg to the longitude of So. CA.

    Click on the Earth Moon Viewer Apogee/Paragee Calc if you want to check out the exact times etc.

    --
    Never Politically Correct ~ I prefer the facts If you don't like what I say, get a life, or comment yourself.
  5. The San Andreas fault is nice and all, but by bersl2 · · Score: 4, Interesting

    What about the New Madrid fault? It's overdue for a 7+ magnitude earthquake, and it's in the middle of America.

  6. Slight New Madrid shake yesterday. by Mr.Sharpy · · Score: 2, Interesting

    There was a small earthquake near New Madrid, MO just yesterday. It was only 3.7 (I think), but it still serves as a reminder that its there and active. Interesting that there was a small quake there while all these quakes have been occuring on the West Coast.

    Recent US Earthquake Activity

  7. Why, a quake goes off, of course. by El+Jynx · · Score: 2, Interesting

    There's a trigger there, see. Their server si co-linked to several underground sets of renewable explosives and a gargantuan rocket turbine buried in the moon, the combination of which allows Quake Control to within a few square miles.

    Oh, come ON. NONE of you have ever wondered why the moon only shows us one face? What're the odds?

    Not yet available for Q3.

    --
    A positive attitude may not solve all your problems, but it will annoy enough people to make it well worth the effort.
  8. Re:Belive it or not... by WhiteBandit · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Dr. Keilis-Borok's office is about 3 doors down from mine. :) I haven't actually talked to him yet though, but I'm working at UCLA this summer for the Southern California Earthquake Center.

    Interestingly enough, his team of researchers are claiming to have predicted the San Simeon earthquake in December and an earthquake last year in Japan. Using the same methods, he is predicting a minimum magnitude 6.5 to strike a 12,000 square mile region of Southern California by September 5th. This 12,000 square mile region is mostly in eastern California and the Mojave Desert (sites of the M7.3 1992 Landers and M7.1 1999 Hector Mines quakes).

    This M5.2 earthquake yesterday happened about 50km southwest of San Diego. It falls quite a ways out of the area of his prediction.