Natural Disasters and Such

Even though we are still a month and a half away from hurricane season,  Mother Nature is showing herself to be in a seriously  cranky mood this year. 

People point to what seems to be an exceptionally high number of catastrophic earthquakes.  Just in the past few days, quakes listed by the USGS include:

• Magnitude 4.9 UTAH April 15, 2010
• Magnitude 6.9 SOUTHERN QINGHAI, CHINA April 13, 2010
• Magnitude 6.3 SPAIN April 11, 2010
• Magnitude 6.8 SOLOMON ISLANDS April 11, 2010
• Magnitude 7.7 NORTHERN SUMATRA, INDONESIA April 06, 2010
• Magnitude 7.2 BAJA CALIFORNIA, MEXICO April 04, 2010
• Magnitude 4.4 GREATER LOS ANGELES AREA, CALIFORNIA March 16, 2010
• Magnitude 8.8 OFFSHORE MAULE, CHILE February 27, 2010

We are just learning now that the 4/13 China quake killed over two thousand people.

 

Earthquake relief continues in Haiti, Chile, etc.  The relief efforts in Haiti, in particular,  are a quandary; when you had nothing to begin with, how do you know when you’re through?

The experts at the USGS  say the recent spate of tremors is nothing out of the ordinary:

China’s tragic magnitude 6.9 earthquake on April 13 and the recent devastating earthquakes in Haiti, Chile, Mexico, and elsewhere have many wondering if this earthquake activity is unusual.

2010 is not showing signs of unusually high earthquake activity. Since 1900, an average of 16 magnitude 7 or greater earthquakes — the size that seismologists define as major — have occurred worldwide each year. Some years have had as few as 6, as in 1986 and 1989, while 1943 had 32, with considerable variability from year to year.

With six major earthquakes striking in the first four months of this year, 2010 is well within the normal range. Furthermore, from April 15, 2009, to April 14, 2010, there have been 18 major earthquakes, a number also well within the expected variation.

Aftershocks will continue in the regions around each of this year’s major earthquakes sites. It is unlikely that any of these aftershocks will be larger than the earthquakes experienced so far, but structures damaged in the previous events could be further damaged and should be treated with caution. Beyond the ongoing aftershock sequences, earthquakes in recent months have not raised the likelihood of future major earthquakes; that likelihood has not decreased, either. Large earthquakes will continue to occur just as they have in the past.

Earthquakes by depth over the last 100 years; yellow=shallow, red=medium and black=deep. 

Unusual or not, just what is causing all the tectonic activity this year? 

On Facebook and elsewhere, fundamentalist Christians are quoting  Luke 19:40 – blaming it all on a lack of prayer; "If they keep quiet, the stones will cry out." and wondering if this is a harbinger of Armageddon.

Last week a prominent Tehran cleric said that promiscuous women are responsible for earthquakes.  Hojatoleslam Kazem Sedighi told worshippers in Tehran on 4/16/10 that they had to stick to strict codes of modesty to protect themselves.

"Many women who do not dress modestly lead young men astray and spread adultery in society which increases earthquakes," he said. "What can we do to avoid being buried under the rubble? There is no other solution but to take refuge in religion and to adapt our lives to Islam's moral codes."

Sounds like a crock to me, but -  Hey, it’s as valid as Al Gore’s sermons on Global Warming.