Earthquakes

SOTT Earth Changes Summary - June 2020: Extreme Weather, Planetary Upheaval, Meteor Fireballs

Sott.net
Tue, 07 Jul 2020 18:04 UTC

Sheets of rain, floods and hail left a path of destruction all over the world, and the northern hemisphere still got snow in June.

The unbelievable amount of precipitation during the past months can be explained with the increasing amount of charged particles in upper layers of the atmosphere.

When meteors and meteorites pass through our lower atmosphere, or when our planet goes trough a comet dust stream, charged particles accumulate between the ionosphere and the surface of the earth causing storms to intensify, clouds to grow and more rain to fall. Wildfires and volcanic eruptions, for example, also contribute to this accumulation of particles.

At the same time, rain can conduct the accumulated electrical charge of the ionosphere to the ground, which increases the occurrence of other electrical phenomena, as tornadoes, hurricanes and plasma formations.

The accumulation of charged aerosols and increasingly colder temperatures in upper layers of the atmosphere - caused by the current solar minimum - can also be responsible of the increasing amount of hail and unseasonable snow around the world.

Charged particles influence weather much more than has been appreciated.

Heavy rain and raging floods took the life of hundreds and affected millions in south China, and destroyed 1,470 houses and 3 bridges in Gorontalo Province, Indonesia. Heavy floods also hit Assam, India leaving 16 dead and over 253,000 affected.

While Romania got its second coldest day in June, Montana got more than 1 foot of snow and southeast Wyoming got 6 inches... just at the beginning of summer.

Siberia got a share of extreme weather this month, from tornadoes to floods and extreme temperature swings.

A 7.5-magnitude earthquake rattled large swaths of southern and central Mexico, killing at least five people. No major damage was reported.

Locusts continued to ravage Africa, India, Brazil, Argentina and the Middle East, with no sign that they'll be gone soon.

All that and more in our SOTT Earth Changes Summary for June 2020:

Powerful 6.6-magnitude earthquake strikes off Indonesia

Eliza McPhee
Daily Mail Australia
Tue, 07 Jul 2020 01:51 UTC

A 6.6 magnitude earthquake has struck the Java Sea off the Indonesian coast

A 6.6 magnitude earthquake has struck off the coast of Java in Indonesia.

The monster earthquake hit at 9.54am AEST on Tuesday and has been felt as far as 800 kilometres south east in Bali.

The earthquake hit around 93.8 kilometers north of Batang, a coastal town in Central Java province, The U.S. Geological Survey reported.

The Bureau of Meteorology said there is no threat of a tsunami and no injuries have been reported.

The epicentre was measured at a depth of 528 kilometres after the earthquake hit.

One person shared on social media they felt their apartment shaking in Ubud for around two minutes.

Two earthquakes shake East Hawaii

Hawaii Tribune-Herald
Sat, 04 Jul 2020 10:11 UTC

© Los Angeles Times
The location and shaking intensity of a magnitude 4.1 earthquake Friday afternoon near Hawaii Volcanoes National Park.

Two earthquakes, one Thursday night and another Friday afternoon, rattled East Hawaii.

The Hawaiian Volcano Observatory recorded the first, a magnitude-4.6 temblor located beneath Kilauea Volcano's south flank, at 11:20 p.m. Thursday.

The earthquake was centered about 4.3 miles south of Pu'u 'O'o at a depth of approximately 4.2 miles.

Very light shaking was reported throughout the Big Island, Maui, and Lanai. The U.S. Geological Survey's "Did you feel it?" service received more than 725 felt reports within the first hour after the earthquake.

According to HVO seismologist Ashton Flinders, the earthquake had no apparent effect on Kilauea or Mauna Loa volcanoes.

"Aftershocks are possible and may be felt," Flinders said.

Kilauea's south flank has been the site of 20 earthquakes of magnitude-4.0 or greater during the past 20 years. Most are caused by abrupt motion of the volcano's south flank, which moves to the southeast over the oceanic crust.

This quake was likely an aftershock of the 2018 magnitude-6.9 earthquake as the volcano continues to settle.

Iceland earthquake swarm hits 9,000 quakes in 10 days

Hannah Osborne
Newsweek
Mon, 29 Jun 2020 09:54 UTC

Image showing the earthquake swarm to the north of Iceland

An ongoing earthquake swarm in Iceland has now reached around 9,000 quakes, officials have said. The swarm, in the north of the country, began on June 19. Experts with the Iceland Meteorological Office (IMO) said activity is ongoing and more earthquakes can be expected.

In an updated statement on the IMO website, officials said there were two events above magnitude 3 on June 28. Both these earthquakes were felt in Siglufjordur and Ólafsfjordur — towns near to where they hit.

The IMO said that of the 9,000 earthquakes, three have been above magnitude 5. This includes a magnitude 5.8 earthquake on June 28. It said there is a chance of more earthquakes of this magnitude in the area.

What is causing the earthquake swarm is not known. Kristín Jónsdóttir, Earthquakes Hazards Officer for the IMO, told the Icelandic National Broadcasting Service RÚV: "We're trying to figure out what's going on."

She said the earthquakes are shallow and it could be that they are related to geothermal production in the region, as they are located near a geothermal power plant.

Comment: Iceland's Grímsvötn volcano showing signs of increased activity, eruption possible

Shallow 4.5 magnitude earthquake hits off Northwest French coast

Sputnik International
Sat, 27 Jun 2020 11:21 UTC

Earthquakes of 4 - 5 magnitude, which are considered moderate, rarely occur in France. In November 2019, two earthquakes measuring 5.1 and 5.7 were detected in southern France.

A 4.5-magnitude earthquake struck on 27 June off the coast of France, data from the French seismological service showed.

The agency said that it registered the quake 105 kilometres (65 miles) southeast of the town of Douarnenez at 10:59 GMT. The epicentre was located at a depth of two kilometres (1.2 miles).

There are no reports about casualties or damages caused by the quake. No tsunami warning has been issued.

Comment: A 4.8 magnitude earthquake struck southeast France on November 11 last year, causing an unusual crack in the Earth's crust, puzzling scientists.

Shallow 6.4-magnitude earthquake hits Xinjiang, China

China Daily
Fri, 26 Jun 2020 09:43 UTC

A 6.4-magnitude earthquake jolted Yutian county of Hotan prefecture in Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region at 5:05 am Friday Beijing Time, according to the China Earthquake Networks Center.

The epicenter was monitored at 35.73 degrees north latitude and 82.33 degrees east longitude, with a depth of 10 km, the CENC said.

No obvious tremors were felt in Yutian county seat.

The average altitude within 5 km around the epicenter is about 5,300 m, and there are no villages within 20 km around the epicenter, according to the regional seismological bureau.

Source: Xinhua

M5.4 earthquake on Turkey-Iran border causes damage to houses

Hurriyet Daily News
Thu, 25 Jun 2020 14:55 UTC

A magnitude-5.4 earthquake hit Turkey's eastern province of Van, the country's disaster agency said.

The National Disaster Management Agency (AFAD) said the quake occurred at 1.03 p.m. local time in the Özalp district at 6.9 kilometers beneath the ground.

There were no immediate reports of casualties.

Some houses were damaged due to the tremors, and damage assessment studies are ongoing, said Van Governor Mehmet Emin Bilmez.

Magnitude 6.1 earthquake off eastern coast of Japan rattles Tokyo

The Japan Times
Thu, 25 Jun 2020 07:07 UTC

© JAPAN METEOROLOGICAL AGENCY
The epicenter of the earthquake that occurred on June 25 at 4:47 a.m. is located in Chiba Prefecture

A magnitude 6.1 earthquake struck off eastern Japan early Thursday, the Japan Meteorological Agency said, rocking buildings in the capital Tokyo and surrounding prefectures. No tsunami warning was issued.

The 4:47 a.m. quake, which originated at a depth of about 36 kilometers, registered as lower 5 on nation's shindo seismic intensity scale of 7 in the city of Asahi, Chiba Prefecture. The agency warned that quakes of similar intensity may follow over the next week in areas that experienced strong swaying.

An intensity of lower 5 means people are likely to become frightened and feel the need to hold onto something stable, according to the agency.

5.8 magnitude earthquake shakes California

Emily Shapiro
ABC News
Wed, 24 Jun 2020 18:02 UTC

A 5.8 magnitude earthquake was measured 17km from Lone Pine, Calif.

A 5.8 magnitude earthquake hit California around 10:45 a.m. local time Wednesday.

The epicenter was near Cartoga, about 180 miles north of Los Angeles.

People at several businesses near Lone Pine and Bishop told ABC News the while the shaking was "intense," they didn't see any damage.

Some shaking was felt in LA.

This comes a day after a 7.4 magnitude quake hit Mexico, near the resort of Huatulco, killing at least six people and damaging hundreds of homes, according to The Associated Press. At least six others were hurt, including two people in Mexico City, more than 300 miles from the epicenter.

Strong M7.5 earthquake hits Oaxaca, Mexico - shaking felt 400 miles away - at least 5 dead (UPDATE)

Tom Phillips
The Guardian
Tue, 23 Jun 2020 16:52 UTC

A 7.5-magnitude earthquake has rattled large swaths of southern and central Mexico, according to the country's national seismological service.

The quake struck the southern state of Oaxaca at 10.29am local time ( 1429 BST) on Tuesday but was felt more than 400 miles away in the capital, Mexico City, where buildings shook and panicked residents fled on to the streets.

Mexican newspapers said there were no immediate reports of damage in the capital. Claudia Sheinbaum, the city's mayor, tweeted: "So far no major incidents [reported]."

The situation near the quake's epicentre in Crucecita, Oaxaca, was not immediately clear.

Comment: The US Tsunami Warning Center has issued a warning for the potential threat of tsunami waves for the Pacific coasts of Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador.

Footage and more details from Twitter:

UPDATE:The Guardian on June 24 reports:

A 7.5-magnitude earthquake has rattled large swaths of southern and central Mexico, killing at least five people.

President Andrés Manuel López Obrador said one person was killed in a building collapse in Huatulco, Oaxaca, while state governor Alejandro Murat said a second person was killed in an apparent house collapse in the mountain village of San Juan Ozolotepec and a third died in circumstances he did not explain.

Federal civil defence authorities reported two more deaths: a worker at the state-run oil company, Pemex, fell to his death from a refinery structure, and a man died in the Oaxaca village of San Agustin Amatengo when a wall fell on him.

Pemex also said the quake caused a fire at its refinery in the Pacific coast city of Salina Cruz, relatively near the epicenter. It said one worker was injured but the flames were quickly extinguished. Churches, bridges and highways also suffered damage during the quake.

López Obrador said there had been more than 140 aftershocks, most of them small.

Mexico's national seismological service said the quake struck the southern state of Oaxaca at 10.29am local time (1429 BST) on Tuesday but was felt more than 400 miles away in the capital, Mexico City, where buildings shook and panicked residents fled on to the streets.

"It really moved," said Francisco Aceves, the owner of an import-export firm in Mexico City who was on the 22nd floor of an office block when the quake struck.

Mexican newspapers said there were no immediate reports of damage in the capital, where memories of a 2017 earthquake that felled buildings and killed more than 300 people are still fresh.

"So far no major damage has been reported - just the collapse of a few walls and building fronts," Claudia Sheinbaum, the city's mayor, said in a video from Mexico City's emergency response centre.

Richard Hanson, a 44-year-old American who runs an NGO in Oaxaca's state capital called Tejiendo Alianzas, said: "It started really slow ... and then very quickly it notched up very fast."

"Our fan was moving around a lot, you could hear the noise of the walls and the earth moving, things stared falling off the shelves in the kitchen and crashing and breaking on the ground."

Outside Hanson said "people were running out of buildings, screaming and getting on the ground ... Some people were just running to any open space."

Photographs from the state capital showed rubble strewn streets and the partially collapsed facade of one historic building.

The earthquake's epicentre was just east of Huatulco, one of Mexico's top tourist destinations, where beaches had only just reopened last week after closing because of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Reuters said Tuesday's quake set off a tsunami warning for a radius of 1,000km (621 miles) on the Pacific coasts of Mexico and Central America, including Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras.

Murat told Milenio Televisión the quake had triggered landslides, cut off road links between some towns and damaged some buildings, including one hospital that had been treating Covid-19 patients. Murat said the sick were being moved elsewhere. But no major buildings in the state capital appeared to have been severely damaged.