Earthquakes around the world

[Human]

A rather strong one occurred near Japan at 11:23 UTC today, according to http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/map (zoom to whole world in upper right side menu)

M 7.8 Earthquake for 189km WNW of Chichi-shima, Japan

An earthquake with magnitude 7.8 occurred near Chichi-shima, Bonin Islands, Japan at 11:23:02.70 UTC on May 30, 2015. (This event has been reviewed by a seismologist.)

 

[Chu]

A rather strong one occurred near Japan at 11:23 UTC today, according to http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/map (zoom to whole world in upper right side menu)

M 7.8 Earthquake for 189km WNW of Chichi-shima, Japan

An earthquake with magnitude 7.8 occurred near Chichi-shima, Bonin Islands, Japan at 11:23:02.70 UTC on May 30, 2015. (This event has been reviewed by a seismologist.)

That seems to be pretty close to where a volcanic island has be "growing" in the past couple of years:

(Change from Dec. 8th, 2013 to dec. 24, 2013)

More pictures here: http://es.sott.net/article/24699-La-isla-surgida-de-un-volcan-submarino-en-Japon-sigue-creciendo-y-se-une-a-otra
and here: http://es.sott.net/article/24671-Nueva-isla-que-emergio-en-aguas-territoriales-de-Japon-no-para-de-crecer-fotos

I wonder if it's related...

 

[Gawan]

A rather strong one occurred near Japan at 11:23 UTC today, according to http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/map (zoom to whole world in upper right side menu)

M 7.8 Earthquake for 189km WNW of Chichi-shima, Japan

An earthquake with magnitude 7.8 occurred near Chichi-shima, Bonin Islands, Japan at 11:23:02.70 UTC on May 30, 2015. (This event has been reviewed by a seismologist.)

It's the second that hit Japan in one week. The last one was on May 25th with a magnitude of 5.6. It generally seems that the ring of fire is very much active in recent days (unfortunately the English embed button does not work but it shows earthquakes and volcanos of the last month):

http://<iframe width="550px" height...th" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

 

[Human]

A rather strong one occurred near Japan at 11:23 UTC today, according to http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/map (zoom to whole world in upper right side menu)

M 7.8 Earthquake for 189km WNW of Chichi-shima, Japan

An earthquake with magnitude 7.8 occurred near Chichi-shima, Bonin Islands, Japan at 11:23:02.70 UTC on May 30, 2015. (This event has been reviewed by a seismologist.)

It's the second that hit Japan in one week. The last one was on May 25th with a magnitude of 5.6. It generally seems that the ring of fire is very much active in recent days (unfortunately the English embed button does not work but it shows earthquakes and volcanos of the last month):

And another one in (near) Japan today (18:49 UTC), M 6.4, quite shallow - epicenter at 9 km (according to that map in previous post).

http://www.sott.net/article/297122-USGS-Earthquake-Magnitude-6-4-Izu-Islands-Japan-region

M 6.4 Earthquake for Izu Islands, Japan region

An earthquake with magnitude 6.4 occurred near Hachijo-jima, Izu Islands, Japan at 18:49:07.80 UTC on May 30, 2015. (This event has been reviewed by a seismologist.)

 

[mabar]

M5.8 - Off the coast of Oregon, from USGS

2015-06-01 06:52:41 (UTC)
2015-06-01 01:52:41 (UTC-05:00) in your timezone
Times in other timezones
Nearby Cities
453km (281mi) W of Waldport, Oregon
461km (286mi) WNW of Coos Bay, Oregon
514km (319mi) W of Dallas, Oregon
517km (321mi) W of Corvallis, Oregon
536km (333mi) W of Salem, Oregon

Add:
Latest:
M 4.3 - Off the coast of Oregon
2015-06-01 07:01:20 UTC
Location
44.535°N 129.755°W
Depth
10.0 km

Added:
Could be due to the Axial Seamount submarine volcano?

Undersea volcano: Axial Seamount off Northwest coast is erupting
Date:
May 4, 2015
Source:
Oregon State University
Summary:
Axial Seamount, an active underwater volcano located about 300 miles off the coast of Oregon and Washington, appears to be erupting -- after two scientists had forecast that such an event would take place there in 2015.

Geologists Bill Chadwick of Oregon State University and Scott Nooner of the University of North Carolina Wilmington made their forecast last September during a public lecture and followed it up with blog posts and a reiteration of their forecast just last week at a scientific workshop.

They based their forecast on some of their previous research -- funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), which showed how the volcano inflates and deflates like a balloon in a repeatable pattern as it responds to magma being fed into the seamount.

Since last Friday, the region has experienced thousands of tiny earthquakes -- a sign that magma is moving toward the surface -- and the seafloor dropped by 2.4 meters, or nearly eight feet, also a sign of magma being withdrawn from a reservoir beneath the summit. Instrumentation recording the activity is part of the NSF-funded Ocean Observatories Initiative. William Wilcock of the University of Washington first observed the earthquakes.

"It isn't clear yet whether the earthquakes and deflation at Axial are related to a full-blown eruption, or if it is only a large intrusion of magma that hasn't quite reached the surface," said Chadwick, who works out of OSU's Hatfield Marine Science Center in Newport and also is affiliated with NOAA's Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory. "There are some hints that lava did erupt, but we may not know for sure until we can get out there with a ship."

In any case, the researchers say, such an eruption is not a threat to coastal residents. The earthquakes at Axial Seamount are small and the seafloor movements gradual and thus cannot cause a tsunami.

"I have to say, I was having doubts about the forecast even the night before the activity started," Chadwick admitted. "We didn't have any real certainty that it would take place -- it was more of a way to test our hypothesis that the pattern we have seen was repeatable and predictable."

Axial Seamount provides scientists with an ideal laboratory, not only because of its close proximity to the Northwest coast, but for its unique structure.

"Because Axial is on very thin ocean crust, its 'plumbing system' is simpler than at most volcanoes on land that are often complicated by other factors related to having a thicker crust," said Chadwick, who is an adjunct professor in OSU's College of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences. "Thus Axial can give us insights into how volcano magma systems work -- and how eruptions might be predicted."

Axial Seamount last erupted in 2011 and that event was loosely forecast by Chadwick and Nooner, who had said in 2006 that the volcano would erupt before 2014. Since the 2011 eruption, additional research led to a refined forecast that the next eruption would be in 2015 based on the fact that the rate of inflation had increased by about 400 percent since the last eruption.

"We've learned that the supply rate of magma has a big influence on the time between eruptions," Nooner said. "When the magma rate was lower, it took 13 years between eruptions. But now when the magma rate is high, it took only four years."

Chadwick and Nooner are scheduled to go back to Axial in August to gather more data, but it may be possible for other researchers to visit the seamount on an expedition as early as May. They hope to confirm the eruption and, if so, measure the volume of lava involved.

Evidence that was key to the successful forecast came in the summer of 2014 via measurements taken by colleagues Dave Caress and Dave Clague of Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute and Mark Zumberge and Glenn Sasagawa of Scripps Oceanographic Institution. Those measurements showed the high rate of magma inflation was continuing.

Story Source:

The above story is based on materials provided by Oregon State University. Note: Materials may be edited for content and length.

It seems to be quite there or quite near there, according to this maps:
_http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/map/#%7B%22feed%22%3A%221day_m25%22%2C%22search%22%3Anull%2C%22listFormat%22%3A%22default%22%2C%22sort%22%3A%22newest%22%2C%22basemap%22%3A%22grayscale%22%2C%22autoUpdate%22%3Atrue%2C%22restrictListToMap%22%3Atrue%2C%22timeZone%22%3A%22utc%22%2C%22mapposition%22%3A%5B%5B38.976492485539424%2C228.80126953125%5D%2C%5B48.69096039092549%2C241.19384765624997%5D%5D%2C%22overlays%22%3A%7B%22plates%22%3Atrue%7D%2C%22viewModes%22%3A%7B%22list%22%3Atrue%2C%22map%22%3Atrue%2C%22settings%22%3Afalse%2C%22help%22%3Afalse%7D%7D

_https://www.google.com.mx/maps/place/Axial+Seamount/@46.0930494,-126.6821289,7z/data=!4m2!3m1!1s0x54fa707815defcf3:0x18b716e687453ff8!5m1!1e4

 

[Human]

M5.8 - Off the coast of Oregon, from USGS

2015-06-01 06:52:41 (UTC)
2015-06-01 01:52:41 (UTC-05:00) in your timezone
Times in other timezones
Nearby Cities
453km (281mi) W of Waldport, Oregon
461km (286mi) WNW of Coos Bay, Oregon
514km (319mi) W of Dallas, Oregon
517km (321mi) W of Corvallis, Oregon
536km (333mi) W of Salem, Oregon

Add:
Latest:
M 4.3 - Off the coast of Oregon
2015-06-01 07:01:20 UTC
Location
44.535°N 129.755°W
Depth
10.0 km

And another one cca 20 min ago, M 6.0, epicenter at depth of 13 km.


6.0 magnitude earthquake

20:11 June 01, 2015 UTC

Location:
Epicenter at 44.494°N, 129.878°W
Coast Of Oregon

Depth: 13 km

Correction: It's been corrected to M 5.9 at 10 km.

Series of earthquakes strike off Oregon coast

A series of earthquakes struck off the Oregon coast Monday but officials say no tsunamis were triggered.

The largest, a magnitude 5.9 quake, struck just after 1 p.m. at a depth of 10 kilmeters (or 6 miles).


A magnitude 5.8 earthquake struck at 12:52 a.m. and a 5.5 hit at 4:46 a.m. Monday morning. A third smaller quake measuring magnitude 4.4 hit at 7:46 a.m.


Paul Caruso with the U.S. Geological Survey says the quakes hit a fault west of the Oregon and Washington coast. They were about 330 miles west of Salem and 288 miles from Coos Bay Oregon.


Caruso says they were 6 miles deep, which is relatively shallow. He says the deeper the quake, the less likely people will feel it. The magnitude 7.8 quake that recently struck Japan did little damage because it was 420 miles deep.


Caruso says the quakes were not big enough to trigger tsunamis. He says it usually takes a magnitude 7 for that to happen.

 

[Shared Joy]

Hi,

yesterday evening there were 4 consecutive earthquakes of lesser magnitude (aprox. 3 M) in Romania, Vrancea County, at the Carpathian Mountains' curb, without damage to property, but clearly felt.
I couldn't find any English reports, just this preliminary computer generated:
_http://hisz.rsoe.hu/alertmap/site/index.php?pageid=seism_index&rid=484225

FWIW
Joy

 

[cubbie]

Hi all..

There was a 5.9 magnitude earthquake (downgraded, previously was 6.0) this morning.. in Sabah, Malaysia..
So close to home again, and a very rare one at that. The damages to the buildings looking bad as we hardly get earthquakes in Malaysia.

Here's one article:
_http://www.thestar.com.my/News/Nation/2015/06/05/Sabah-quake/

 

[Cleo]

There was a 4.2 magnitude earthquake near Springfield, Oregon today, July 4th. I was at work at the time and the building shook for a few seconds. Was a bit shocking at the time. First earthquake I've experienced (that I'm aware of). Looks like there was a 2.1 magnitude earthquake near Eugene, OR which is right next to Springfield about 10 days ago as well.

http://earthquaketrack.com/p/united-states/oregon/recent

 

[Altair]

Earthquake and Volcano Threat for USA Increases

Monday, June 8, 2015 Press Release 3-2015
9:00 AM EDT

In a rare letter to Mr. Craig Fugate, the Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management
Agency (FEMA), the Space and Science Research Corporation (SSRC), has disclosed that we are
about to enter a potentially catastrophic period of record earthquakes and volcanic eruptions
throughout the United States.

The letter was signed by SSRC President, Mr. John Casey, and delivered to FEMA headquarters
in Washington, D.C. today.

In the letter, Mr. Casey outlines how the ongoing dramatic reduction in the Sun’s energy output will not only plunge the world into a decades-long cold epoch, but at the same time bring record geophysical devastation in monster earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. These cold climate periods called “solar hibernations” or “solar minimums,” are well known phenomena in the solar physics community. The SSRC has done important pioneering work in the field of solar- climate modeling and has established itself as a leader in climate prediction and the study of these hibernations of the Sun.

Citing new research included in the SSRC’s semi-annual Global Climate Status Report (GCSR) to come out on Wednesday, the letter to FEMA’s Craig Fugate contained an important warning for all major earthquake fault zones and volcanically active areas. The research focuses especially on the increased threat for the New Madrid Seismic Zone (NMSZ) between St. Louis and Memphis.

This new threat information is contained in one of several papers in the June 10 edition of the GCSR paper authored by Mr. Casey and Dr. Dong Choi, Director of Research for the International Earthquake and Volcano Prediction Center (IEVPC). The paper shows that the NMSZ is due for another calamitous quake between 2017 and 2038. Dr. Choi and Casey show that for four times in a row since the year 1450, a major quake strikes the NMSZ when the Sun has gone into a hibernation phase. This scientific revelation is what Choi and Casey believes solves the puzzle of when the next major quake will strike the area. Geologists have studied the NMSZ for many years using traditional approaches. Casey and Choi say it is the combined research from the fields of solar physics and geology that provides the best opportunity to date to estimate when the next devastating NMSZ earthquake will strike. Other scientists agree with their opinion.


For this singular reason Dr. Choi and Mr. Casey have strongly recommended to FEMA Administrator Fugate that all high risk earthquake fault zones and areas with a history of volcanic eruptions in the USA take immediate precautions to mitigate what they describe as a “period of unparalleled geophysical lethality and destruction.” Mr. Casey adds, “The very strong correlation between these solar minimums and the incidence of catastrophic earthquakes worldwide is an impressive display of how interconnected we all are to our natural world and the cycles of the Sun. It would be foolhardy to ignore in particular, the history of major earthquakes in the NMSZ and the fact that at the bottom of every solar hibernation for the past 600 years, that area has seen devastating earthquakes ranging from M6.8 to M8.0.

”While we address the New Madrid risk in this press release and in the June 10, 2016 Global Climate Status Report, the coincidence of major earthquakes with solar minimums is not limited to just that area of the US. That is why our letter to Administrator Fugate was a nationwide alert. The ~M9.0 Cascadia quake and tsunami of 1700 was at the bottom of the coldest solar hibernation period which was called the Maunder Minimum. The Great San Francisco quake of 1906 was at the bottom of another solar low point - the ‘Centennial’ Minimum as it is called at the SSRC. This strong association of solar activity and the worst earthquakes and volcanic eruptions could represent the ‘missing link’ for geophysical disaster prediction.” Dr. Choi (Australia) also supports Casey’s opinion by saying, “The extensive research done in this area is clear in its implications. When the solar minimums arrive, the worst recorded earthquakes and volcanic eruptions strike. The last solar minimum for example, saw the largest series of earthquakes in human history in the NMSZ and the largest recorded volcanic eruption at Mt. Tambora in Indonesia. These events occurred within a few years of each other during the coldest period in the Sun’s last hibernation in the early 1800’s.”

Source: _http://spaceandscience.net/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderfiles/ssrcpressrelease32015earthquakeandvolcanothreatforusaincreases.pdf

 

[Laura]

Is there a graphic comparison of major earthquakes with solar cycles anywhere?

Found one for a very short period:

For explanation of the graph see this site: http://astroblogger.blogspot.fr/2011/03/solar-activity-vs-earthquakes.html

Also, this is worth checking out: http://www.science20.com/florilegium/blog/why_so_many_earthquakes_decade-65178

 

[MusicMan]

You might check these blogs, they have some interesting discussion in them, but I'm no expert..

Solar Activity vs Earthquakes
_http://astroblogger.blogspot.com.au/2011/03/solar-activity-vs-earthquakes.html

Volcanic activity correlated with prolonged solar minimum
_https://weathercycles.wordpress.com/2014/06/28/volcanic-activity-correlated-with-solar-minimum/

Big earthquakes generally occur at low sunspot numbers
_https://tallbloke.wordpress.com/2015/01/31/big-earthquakes-generally-occur-at-low-sunspot-numbers/

The USGS website has a lot of discussion papers, probably more than you care to know about.

 

[Altair]

I found some statistical data for sunspot numbers starting with 1700 (_http://www.sidc.be/silso/versionarchive). I will create a graph with sunspot numbers, known solar grand minimums and major earthquakes. This paper (http://cc.oulu.fi/~usoskin/personal/aa7704-07.pdf) offers a reconstruction of sunspot numbers from 8000 BC. The reconstruction is based on measurements of C14 in tree rings, so I'm not sure whether it's a valid approach.

 

[Eboard10]

I found some statistical data for sunspot numbers starting with 1700 (_http://www.sidc.be/silso/versionarchive). I will create a graph with sunspot numbers, known solar grand minimums and major earthquakes. This paper (http://cc.oulu.fi/~usoskin/personal/aa7704-07.pdf) offers a reconstruction of sunspot numbers from 8000 BC. The reconstruction is based on measurements of C14 in tree rings, so I'm not sure whether it's a valid approach.

Hi Altair, for a comprehensive historical list of all earthquakes you can use this link from the USGS:

_http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/search/

Just select the time period you want to look for and you will get the full list. Hope it helps.

ADDED: FYI, the list of earthquakes goes back to 1900.

 

[Altair]

Thanks, Eboard10. I'll check it.