Slow Seismic Slip Event Underway in Pacific Northwest

www.livescience.com ^ | Updated 2:35 p.m. ET Sept. 14 -13 September 2005 | By Robert Roy Britt

[Bernard Marx]

How is that done?

Oh come on, haven't you ever watched the "Tremors" movies on the Sci Fi channel?

[BunnySlippers]

Sounds like a dance: "Seismic slip, let your backbone flip" ...

[DaughterOfAnIwoJimaVet]

Shakey ping.

[Diana in Wisconsin]

"An important seismic event imperceptible to humans..."

Just keep an eye on your local rodents. When you see rats scrambling for safety, you can be assured something big is coming your way. (And I don't mean Fat Teddy!)

Don't ask me how I know this, as my reasoning skills are imperceptible to other humans. ;)

[Myrddin]

My son reminds me that I'm living just north of the former bed of Lake Bonneville. That little puddle in northern Utah is a leftover.

[JustDoItAlways]

The fault could move backwards if you think of it as chunks along each side of the fault. There is never a solid piece on either side of a fault line. A fault line is never straight, but is a series of jagged sections, 5 miles long, 100 miles long which do the actual slipping when an earthqauke happens.

One side of the fault (the Pacific plate) is moving North, the other (the North American plale) is more-or-less stationary. The stationary continental side, or more accurately a section of it, can be pushed so far north by being locked up against the Pacific side, that it eventually slips backward, either slowly like in this case, or all at once like in a big earthquake.

The pressure can build so much that if both sides are still locked enough together, both sides of the fault line move backwards.

But to me this means that the pressure is built up so much that a big quake can happen (especially considering the length of the sections moving.)

[ovrtaxt]

Obviously Bush's fault.

He should apologize and take responsibility immediately.

[cmsgop]

Oh Great! I live 30mi East of Seattle, and I saw two rats cross the road today heading NE, I also saw the same thing last week.

[USFRIENDINVICTORIA]

You could add liquefaction in areas built on sediment, such as parts of greater Vancouver. Whole buildings will just sink, like they're built on quicksand.

At least if you're sucked below ground by liquefaction you'll miss the tsunami -- which will be enormous.

Time to go back to my normal state of denial.

[blam]

Ping.

[devane617]

I had slow creep once. Went to the pharmacy and bought some meds and now my creep is back to normal speed.

[Thumper1960]

Oh Great! I live 30mi East of Seattle, and I saw two rats cross the road today heading NE, I also saw the same thing last week.

And?

I thought WA was polluted with demoncrats.

[Cold Heart]

I've been hoping the big one does not occur during flood and storm season. Or when I'm out of town, the laundry is not done or my gas tank & wallet are low. Keeping my gas tank & wallet topped at the same time hasn't been a common occurrence lately.