Posted on 03/04/2010 5:02:30 AM PST by Kartographer
Just 50 miles off the Pacific Northwest coast is an earthquake hotspot that threatens to unleash on Seattle, Portland and Vancouver the kind of damage that has shattered Chile.
The fault has been dormant for more than 300 years, but when it awakens — tomorrow or decades from now — the consequences could be devastating.
(Excerpt) Read more at news.yahoo.com ...
The earthquake caused a tsunami that struck the coast of Japan, and may also be linked to the Bonneville slide.
Evidence of the earthquake
Evidence supporting the occurrence of the 1700 earthquake has been gathered into the 2005 book The Orphan Tsunami of 1700, by geologist Brian Atwater and others.
The evidence suggests that it took place at about 9:00 PM on January 26, 1700 (NS). Although there were no written records in the region at the time, the earthquake's precise time is nevertheless known from Japanese records of a tsunami that has not been tied to any other Pacific Rim earthquake. The most important clue linking the tsunami in Japan and the earthquake in the Pacific Northwest comes from studies of tree rings (dendrochronology) which show that red cedar trees killed by lowering of coastal forests into the tidal zone by the earthquake have outermost growth rings that formed in 1699, the last growing season before the tsunami. Oral traditions describing a large quake also exist among the region's inhabitants, although these do not specify the date.
This is a pro/con event. Pro-will, hopefully eliminate a lot of liberals.
Con-we will waste jillions of dollars rebuilding those liberal meccas.
Normally, I’d dismiss this as alarmist... except that the Pacific rim has been oddly active within the past month.
Dang! This is the downside of the Pacific Northwest. It is probably (in my opinion atleast) the single MOST beautiful part of the North American continent.
It is also the deadliest. Active volcanoes, active earthquake zone and nearest to the Chicoms
Have thought of moving there many times. Probably still will. I can only hope that it is not a decision I regret
We live with that knowledge every day here in the Seattle area. We may not get as many moderate or larger quakes than California, but we have had some mega-quakes in the past long before we had cities, and highways. What has happened before will happen again.
I think a 9.0 EQ of three to five minute duration will hit the Seattle area and destroy the city any time now. It’s over due and I am so glad not be living there any more.
Both volcanic activity and seismic activity seem to be on the increase lately.
Who knew that the Indians living in the Pac NW had seismographs, and were recording Richter levels, in 1700! Wow!
The mid Mississippi River Valley from Memphis to St Louis is due for a major earthquake along the New Madrid fault.
Many of the buildings in both metro areas are not even close to earthquake standards in both SF or LA.
I agree, it is probably the most beautiful part of the USA. I hope I don’t see it’s destruction in my lifetime. Every part of the country has some sort of potential natural disaster, but it seems that a huge earthquake causes the most horrible devastation of all.
Mega-thrust earthquakes are the most powerful and create large tsunamis.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Megathrust_earthquake
Too wet and cold.
You are right about the Pacific rim being active lately. What strikes me is how quiet the North American coasts have been. If you look at a world quake map of the last few weeks you will see 3/4 of the rim with extreme activity and the 1/4 that is North America with nary a one. Seems strange to me.
“has shattered Chile” should read has shattered souther coastal Chile. Santiago, while rocked stood up well with the exception of a couple of highway bridges and some sub-standard buildings. Almost all of the new construction (last 25 years) took the shock very well. The highway bridges that fell were built with the flawed California model based on a Spanish design and against the advise of MANY engineers.
Interesting because they didn’t even have the wheel!
it was very similar to the Flintstones seismographs...requiring a beaver with a stylus (made of an eagle feather inked with an Indian paint pot) deftly tied to the beavers tail with wet buckskin so that when it dries it tightens.....the graph itself is a buffalo skin looped through cedar log rollers and propelled by an otter in the inside of the loop who has a fish dandling in front of him to get him to run, hence power the chart. The beavers belly is to the ground and when seismic activity occurs it is translated to his tail which moves more or less determined by the intensity of the quake....
You are an idiot.
You haven’t been here, have you?
Four or five times a year.
Oh! Oh! Oh! I’m so scared. Will this occur before the killer bees, the meteorites, global warming, global pandemics, comets, solar flares, supernovas, magnetic pole shifts, nuclear annilation, famines, floods, pestilences, monsters, killer pythons, etc. get us?
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