Slashdot Mirror


Midwestern Fault Zones Are Still Alive

sciencehabit writes "The occasional quakes rattling the New Madrid Seismic Zone, a series of Midwestern faults named for a small town in the Missouri Bootheel, aren't aftershocks of the massive quakes that rocked our fledgling nation more than 2 centuries ago, a new study suggests. In other words, modern-day quakes are signs that the faults in the region are still accumulating stress—and sometimes releasing it as fresh rumblings."

29 of 115 comments (clear)

  1. Oh, Frack by postbigbang · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Can't be all that juice pumped into the ground.

    --
    ---- Teach Peace. It's Cheaper Than War.
    1. Re:Oh, Frack by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Insightful

      Can't be all that juice pumped into the ground.

      Well it could be. But you've just demonstrated the difference between faith and science. You have faith that fracking is bad and thus ascribe to it all manner of devilry. Meanwhile scientists collect and study the data, trying to eliminate theories, rather than just seizing onto one charismatic idea to cherish and hold as the One True Faith.

    2. Re:Oh, Frack by bobbied · · Score: 2

      They where doing that in 1911-2? Wow, Fracking has been going on a LONG time then..

      --
      "File to fit, pound to insert, paint to match" - Aircraft Maintenance 101
    3. Re:Oh, Frack by Dereck1701 · · Score: 2

      My geology is a little rusty, but I don't think any amount of human activity can "create" full fledged earthquakes. Some activities can encourage an already building earthquake to occur before it would naturally, but not create one from nothing or even enhance one that is building. In some cases this could actually be a plus, it would probably be preferable to have a few 6.0 quakes that you can roughly predict rather than one 8.5 quake that you don' t have a clue when it will occur.

    4. Re:Oh, Frack by postbigbang · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Correlation doesn't equal causation.

      That said, there is a statistical incidence that wants to correlate heavy fracking with earthquakes. Whether the New Madrid is just unstable, or becoming unstabilized with mounting fracking is unknown. The statistical correlation between seismic movements and fracking remains, however.

      So turn on the tap, and light your cigar.

      --
      ---- Teach Peace. It's Cheaper Than War.
    5. Re:Oh, Frack by dugancent · · Score: 2

      I lived in Indiana in 2008 when the 5.4 earthquake happened. It was in the wabash seismic area and there was no fraking going on at the time.

      Same with the Virginia earthquake. Again, no fraking was happening any where near a fault.

      --
      SJWs are the new boogeyman. -Me
    6. Re:Oh, Frack by postbigbang · · Score: 2

      It's true Indiana doesn't have fracking; I believe the same is true of Virginia. Indiana doesn't quite lay on the New Madrid, rather it's to the S and W of Indiana-- look on a map.

      Is fracking a contributor? Some evidence says yes.

      --
      ---- Teach Peace. It's Cheaper Than War.
    7. Re:Oh, Frack by flyneye · · Score: 4, Funny

      Meanwhile, we are getting tremors here, where there used to be NO tremors and it all started when the Okies started fracking.
      What would you say that is? The Teletubbies having a party?
      It's fracking and frankly it needs to stop. The Okies are having the worst of it and want it to stop from what I see of their newscasts, but as usual, corporate interests are saying;" We'll look into this, after while, when we get time, if we remember."
      Well what a bunch of dumbshits. We just don't need the extra gas that fucking bad. If you think you do, go live in Oklahoma then blow off your fucking mouth.

      --
      *Repent!Quit Your Job!Slack Off!The World Ends Tomorrow and You May Die!
  2. No kidding? by BenJeremy · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Seriously, who writes this stuff? I remember a minor earthquake we had in Michigan in the mid-80s. Why would they suddenly stop? Geological activity occurs over geological time scales, which is to say, thousands, even millions of years.

  3. Y'hear that Midwest? by Culture20 · · Score: 4, Funny

    It's all y'all's fault.

    1. Re:Y'hear that Midwest? by c0lo · · Score: 2

      Midwestern faults named for a small town in the Missouri Bootheel

      Need coffee. My first read resembled something lile: midwife's faults named for a small town in the Misere Brothel

      --
      Questions raise, answers kill. Raise questions to stay alive.
    2. Re:Y'hear that Midwest? by mjwx · · Score: 4, Insightful

      It's all y'all's fault.

      Y'all == singular
      All y'all == plural
      Y'all's == y'all need to go back to grammar school.

      --
      Calling someone a "hater" only means you can not rationally rebut their argument.
    3. Re:Y'hear that Midwest? by Culture20 · · Score: 2

      Colloquial plural possessive. Rephrased as "it is the fault of all y'all", but less funny since it seems less like I'm discussing a geological fault.

  4. Anyway by Impy+the+Impiuos+Imp · · Score: 2

    I'll never forget the Nova special on PBS about 10 years ago, "Welcome to Nashville, a city waiting to die."

    Seems that area, not California, is the site of the most powerful earthquake in recorded history. And with building codes nothing like California.

    --
    (-1: Post disagrees with my already-settled worldview) is not a valid mod option.
    1. Re:Anyway by riverat1 · · Score: 5, Informative

      I think the 1700 Cascadia earthquake off the Oregon/Washington coast probably qualifies as the largest in recorded history in the continental US. It hit at about 9:00 pm, January 26, 1700 and was an estimated magnitude of 8.7-9.2. (The reason the time is known so accurately is that the tsunami it caused was recorded in Japanese records.)

  5. Re:On the other hand by ackthpt · · Score: 3, Informative

    From the article ... "But some scientists don't find the team's results convincing."

    There were 4 earthquakes along the New Madrid Fault in the 1811-1812 timeframe which ere commented to have rung church bells in Washington DC, as well as modified the course of the Mississippi River. Harder bedrock (unlike all this nice, soft sandstone in the west coast) mean the shock is felt much stronger and further. I think I'd cut them some slack. An 8.0 along the fault would make Loma Prieta (1989) and Northridge (1994) look like picnics.

    They should be considered sleeping or dormant, not inactive.

    --

    A feeling of having made the same mistake before: Deja Foobar
  6. Re:Midwest by ackthpt · · Score: 4, Funny

    The best thing that could happen to Midwest geography would be growing a mountain range... An east-west one, so that it'd be tolerable in winter, as long as you're south of it, and tolerable in summer, as long as you're north.

    You and Lex Luthor think alike.

    --

    A feeling of having made the same mistake before: Deja Foobar
  7. Re:Where's the "safest" place on Earth? by LunaticTippy · · Score: 2

    Traffic accidents kill more people than natural disasters by orders of magnitude, and "lifestyle" diseases such as cancer and heart disease dwarf all else.

    Logically, the safest place to life is somewhere you are happy and able to stay physically active and don't have to drive much. If it happens to be earthquakey or spidery don't waste your time worrying because it'll be lost in the statistical noise.

    --
    Man, you really need that seminar!
  8. Re:Faults still active? by bobbied · · Score: 2

    No it was the OZONE hole back in 1811... Get your history straight...

    --
    "File to fit, pound to insert, paint to match" - Aircraft Maintenance 101
  9. Astounding! by Just+Some+Guy · · Score: 3, Insightful

    The Earth is approximately 4.5 billion years old, or about 1/22,500,000th older than it was when the last major earthquake hit in New Madrid.

    For comparison, that's like being surprised that the US is roughly the same as it was 5.5 minutes ago.

    Other fun Deep Time trivia: if the entire Earth's history were compressed into a 24 hour day, with the start being midnight yesterday and the current time being midnight tonight, then its surface was overrun with dinosaurs at 11:40PM. Modern Man came on the scene around 11:59:56PM.

    --
    Dewey, what part of this looks like authorities should be involved?
  10. Re:Where's the "safest" place on Earth? by turkeydance · · Score: 5, Funny

    my home town. nothing happens here. ever.

  11. Re:Where's the "safest" place on Earth? by Zynder · · Score: 2

    Did you know that archaeologists found that exact same phrase (in Latin) carved on one the homes in Pompeii? :D

  12. Re:On the other hand by jbengt · · Score: 3, Informative

    The current building code in St Louis is written with earthquakes in mind, it's ust that there are a lot of older buildings that are still vulnerable.

  13. Follow the money - as in, yours by SuperKendall · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Still have a few oil company shills lurking the influential threads of Slashdot, I see.

    There is a LOT of oil money from the Gulf trying to put a lid on Fracking. Nice to see the AC's are getting paid handsomely to try and stomp out independence from a barbaric region of the earth.

    --
    "There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley
  14. Re:astounding? by riverat1 · · Score: 2

    From geologic research there were events similar to the 1811/12 earthquakes around 1450, 900 and 300 and evidence for them as far back as 4800 B.C. That gives you some idea of the history. Based on that I'd say chances are it will be over 100 years before the next really big quake but you never know for sure.

  15. Re:Care to publish your source? by postbigbang · · Score: 2
    --
    ---- Teach Peace. It's Cheaper Than War.
  16. So obvious by SuperKendall · · Score: 3, Informative

    Liar liar well on fire:

    What are you, ten?

    So sad you can't even do basic Google searches, all of your links have been
    debunked.

    You really will believe anything your masters spoon-feed you, won't you? What a shame that critical thinking has been so totally disabled by the green movement, once you strong and useful, now just a tool to be used by Arab oil interests to stop franking from slowing down the money flow.

    I guess you have no interests in stopping the flow of money from the west going to prop up cultures that horribly abuse women and homosexuals. You may as well be casting stones yourself.

    --
    "There is more worth loving than we have strength to love." - Brian Jay Stanley
    1. Re:So obvious by postbigbang · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Ends don't justify the means. You all but admit the monetary motivations. I don't justify the maltreatment of people anywhere. Not even in Texas.

      Nah, even those University of Texas resources can't be believed.

      Tell me this: are you an astroturfer? Do you get paid to shill for these guys? I'll take an honest answer. If you really believe this, I'll criticize no further.

      We're far from agreement on the issue of fracking, however. I believe it's detrimental, and holds down the inevitable transition to other less-caustic fuel sources.

      --
      ---- Teach Peace. It's Cheaper Than War.
  17. Re:Where's the "safest" place on Earth? by Brett+Buck · · Score: 2

    Up near Hudson Bay in Canada is a good candidate. That's where the Canadian Shield proto-continent is, mostly unaltered since Archaen times.