Geobulletin alpha

Latest Oklahoma earthquake paroxysm starts 

Wow, it started early, fast and furious.  I was expecting another week or two, but maybe all that rain went down the open boreholes. This parox will be on the lower section.  I'm calling it with this one, because the earthquake is following the mechanism, and although called an m4.3 here, it has been recorded as a M5.2, intensity 6.  This was a mixed mechanism, with shear-tension, but

August 31, 2015 

Learn About Google Earth – A Free Download from GoogleGeology.com What’s Driving the Global Glut of Oil ?PBS Newshour Mercury-Laden Fog Over Coastal CaliforniaNational Science Foundation About 80% of Colombia’s Gold Output Comes From Illegal MinersMining.com Drones and Data Could Dominate Future Oil FieldsFuel Fix Scientists Discover Mechanism Behind “Strange” EarthquakesUniversity of Southern California Desert

Oklahoma Earthquake Easter Egg 

Article Find the Easter Egg right under your feet.  It's an M5 earthquake disguised as an M4.2.  The rest of the world calls it a 5, but some junior usgus seismologist, being forced to work the weekend, shrunk the kids. The press is in on this like flies on stink.  Makes no difference to me, but this large earthquake was very deep, and had a mechanism that puts out very little PGV for

Replace all your mechanical old clocks with quartz 

We, who love old clocks, have waited for this moment.  Who can remember to wind at the exact same time every day?  Even if you do, the time varies wildly with the weather.  The mechanisms are beautiful and I started my path to engineering fixing these things when I was a kid. That's why you carefully preserve the mechanism for your grandkids to put it back if they want.  They'll soon take

Deep M4.0 Oklahoma earthquake 

Nothing to see here, really.  But, I always look on the bright side.  This was a directed strike-slip and I'm calling it deep.  In fact, all the latest significant earthquakes have been deep, ushering in the new phase of depth extension.  This was too small to produce regional stress relief, and an M2.9 happened shortly afterwards. I've been saying that this mechanism is exactly

Darwin Day resolution introduced in Arizona legislature 

State Representatives Sherwood and Rios introduced a resolution in the Arizona House proclaiming February 12, 2015 as International Darwin Day in Arizona.   The resolution states: Whereas, February 12, 2015 is the 206th anniversary of the birth of Charles Darwin; and Whereas, Charles Darwin is recognized for the discovery of natural selection as the mechanism by

Oklahoma M4.2 earthquake - into the Enid Breach 

Into the breach.  This earthquake was strongly felt by experienced people, so it may be a thrust. It has the pattern that I would expect for a thrust - intense and a small area.  All in all, the mechanism is growing nicely.  I still have no idea as to why the Enid Breach exists, I think there may be two megathrusts that have run together.  The oil companies know, since they have

Oklahoma M3.7 earthquake, back to the first mechanism 

Well, we're back to the future, with the standard earthquakes for the first mechanism. They might as well just cast these solutions with a rubber stamp.  :)  This line has strike-slip with some tension.  We should be getting 4's with the identical stamp. As I'm constantly whining about, we need matched thrusts to keep this up.  Remember, by definition, if we didn't have a sustaining

Oklahoma earthquake - M4.2 

Here I am a the cottage, with an old Linux laptop, and using my phone's Android tethering. This is right on the cusp of the thrust and shear, and we've had a lot of M4's here.  The mechanism is not surprising, it is a mixture of shear and tension.  For some reason, the thrust zone has been showing these tension events which indicate a high-angle or rough thrust that doesn't want to let go.

May 20th Rifting in Africa - Seismological views from Afar 

Rifting in Africa - Seismological views from AfarProfessor Mike Kendall, University of BristolThe Western Regional Group is pleased to invite you to an evening presentation on rifting in Africa. The rifting of continents and eventual formation of ocean basins is a fundamental component of plate tectonics, yet the mechanism for break-up is poorly understood. Rifting of the continents leading to plate rupture occurs by a combination of mechanical deformation and magma intrusion, but the [...]

Forensic Paleo Biology: The Mechanism Of Transformation 

    The term pseudomorphism is primarily used to describe a crystal of various types, whose mineral content has changed, while still possessing the crystal habit of it’s former self. This very same process alters the mineral content of everything after burial and continues with depth and heat and the introduction of different precipitates from hydro-thermal

OK M4.0 - Primary shear zone shoots back 

Like I said before, that other earthquake was off the main zone, and the only thing it could do is load the primary shear wing.  That has just happened with this earthquake, and this then sheds stress to the thrust, which we haven't heard from lately.  Although no mechanism is posted, this one is most likely pure shear, and will not be

Natural Selection And Punctuated Equilibrium 

A reader asks- I am still curious as to the mechanism and speed with which evolution by natural selection itself happened, like was it "punctuated equilibrium" or was it a slow and steady (continuous) mode of evolution, or was it a combination of the two, or some altogether third process. Not many programs discuss this unfortunately.. I left a short answer in a comment. Some

From synchrotron to super-volcano – buoyed up by magma 

Thank goodness Mount Sinabung isn’t a supervolcano. Binsar Bakkara/AP Devastating supervolcanoes can erupt simply due to changes that happen in their giant magma chambers as they slowly cool, according to a new study. This finding marks the first time researchers have been able to explain the mechanism behind the eruptions of the largest volcanoes on

Understanding Galapagos Volcanoes 

“The chance transit of a satellite over the April 2009 eruption of Fernandina volcano — the most active in South America’s famed Galápagos archipelago — has revealed for the first time the mechanism behind the characteristic pattern of eruptive fissures on the island chain’s volcanoes.” Quoted from the USGS

Oklahoma earthquake - M3.7 

Can't believe it!  Just shy of a 4 again!  This is on an outlier injection point, though, not in the mechanism.  Although it would be extra fun to see the line going down the NE megathrust.  I was really expecting an M4.5 by now, which would then have a response up the shear wings.  Maybe for Christmas... My other big prediction was for an M7 in the armpit of Alaska.  That's a good

Oklahoma earthquakes continue 

The NW cross-fracture (transform) is now being defined in the hanging wall.  We have had a spray before along this structure.  I was wondering whether it penetrated the footwall, since I see some signs of it.  Nevertheless, we have a mechanism, and we should see an M4 soon on the NW fault. Unless, of course, something tragic happens....   such as stopping the injection. Whoops, it was an

Understanding Galapagos Volcanoes 

“The chance transit of a satellite over the April 2009 eruption of Fernandina volcano — the most active in South America’s famed Galápagos archipelago — has revealed for the first time the mechanism behind the characteristic pattern of eruptive fissures on the island chain’s

Longevity Protein Found? Or at Least Confirmed? 

Given a choice, most of us would choose prefer to keep our youth and live forever. The mechanism behind the work of a protein already suspected in playing a role in longevity has recently been proved to do just that. The photograph above shows the structure of the sirtuin protein Sirt1. Developmental biologist Shin-ichiro Imai of Washington University in St. Louis found that rather

Oklahoma earthquakes active over the weekend 

Being the target of F5 tornadoes, I can fully understand why M3 earthquakes are ignored.  For some reason all these earthquakes are stuck at the M3 level.  In Arkansas, a mechanism quickly develops, and the magnitude rapidly escalates.  For OK, I blame the M5.6 injection earthquake, it has fully mucked up the