With research compiled, it appears as though America better get ready for a set of detrimental earthquakes over the next few years affecting the San Andreas region, the New Madrid region, and the East Coast. Multiple scientists claim that all of these regions are well overdue for a big one. The real question, are they all connected? -Tell us what you think below!
America is set to be rocked by the San Andreas fault at any time in the near future, claims a leading earthquake scientist at the National Earthquake Conference in Long Beach. 1857, the year a monstrous 7.9 earthquake struck the region, and since that time, the San Andreas fault has been far too quiet.
“The springs on the San Andreas system have been wound very, very tight. And the southern San Andreas fault, in particular, looks like it’s locked, loaded and ready to go,” Jordan said in the opening keynote talk.
Other sections of the San Andreas fault also are far overdue for a big quake. Further southeast of the Cajon Pass, such as in San Bernardino County, the fault has not moved substantially since an earthquake in 1812, and further southeast toward the Salton Sea, it has been relatively quiet since about 1680 to 1690.
The San Andreas fault, quiet now for over a century, is wound very tight. The problem: with continuous movement the Pacific plate moving northwest of the North American plate should be having earthquakes which relieve stress in the region. However, the San Andreas region has had no quakes, or no stress relief, for such a long period of time that the next quake in the region could very well be one of the largest quakes America has ever seen.
Every 100 years or so, earthquakes should be relieving about 16 feet of accumulated plate movement, but again nothing. Which is why the scientist claims that the San Andreas is “locked, loaded and ready to go.”
See the computer generated simulators below.
[fvplayer src=”https://player.vimeo.com/external/165565822.sd.mp4?s=62228aef79a91e168e31c4217dca0fdb2fe19ebb&profile_id=165″ splash=”https://christianjournal.net/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/la-me-ln-san-andreas-fault-earthquake-20160504-003.jpg” playlist=”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V2Ow0Yuv5co,https://christianjournal.net/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/la-me-ln-san-andreas-fault-earthquake-20160504-001.jpg”]
Jordan, the scientist, believes the quake could be up to 8 in magnitude leading to diverse damage which is why California should be ready for the quake. Over the next few years, the San Andreas is not the only area expecting a large quake; the New Madrid region is also expecting a large quake. The East Coast is also to expect earthquakes over the next few years because the underside of the North American Plate is peeling off which is making it more susceptible to movement.
North America, is due to start shaking over the next few years, and only time will tell what exactly comes out of the above scientists predictions. However, if they are right, North America will geographically change shape.
Works Cited
Rong-Gong Lin II. “San Andreas fault 'locked, loaded and ready to roll' with big earthquake, expert says .” The Los Angeles Times. . (2016): . . http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-san-andreas-fault-earthquake-20160504-story.html
