Re: Yellowstone Caldera (update from original post)
Posted by Southern Man on Nov 05, 2002 at 08:16
(12.215.156.169)Re: Yellowstone Caldera (update from original post) (phreakgrrrl)
My knowledge of geology and specifically earthquake activity is even less than DAMorgan's knowledge of physics but I'm in a ramblin' mood this morning so here are my thoughts:
"Scientists once believed that an earthquake at one location could not trigger earthquakes at distant sites."
This is hard for me to believe. I thought it was obvious to even someone who only listened to Dan Rather that earthquakes congregated in swarms worldwide. Even a casual review of recent history would show that several major quakes will occur in a few month period followed by months or years without major quakes.
Another seemingly unrecognized predictor of quakes is weather. Personal experience and logic has proven to me that a quake is more likely when there is a sudden decrease in air pressure. I haven't kept up with the weather in the Yellowstone region recently but this morning there is a low pressure area to the east and high pressure to the west. Did that low go over Yellowstone? That could contribute to instability. The approaching high could also promote warping which might promote another quake swarm in that area soon.