Yet another crackpot theiry :-)
It seems to me that if two tectonic plates were stressed to the max and ready to slip, that the position of the moon could provide just enough of a tidal pull at just the right angle, to trigger the slip.
Whether or not this insight would lead to any predictive ability is probably marginal. Though perhaps one might correlate increased earthquake (or moonquake even) activity during times of lunar perigee.
2006-07-15 09:14:22 · 2 answers · asked by samsyn 3 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Earth Sciences & Geology
Yes, that's right. The gravitational pull of the moon is not sufficient on earth to cause an earthquake, but it could certainly trigger one. I remember reading about research on the timing of past quakes relative to the position of the moon and the tides, but I can't remember if there was any statistical correlation or not.
We haven't really figured out what actually triggers quakes yet. We can more or less predict where they are going to happen, but not when.
2006-07-15 12:27:10 · answer #1 · answered by minefinder 7 · 1⤊ 1⤋
Just think the forces of the moon are a mear fraction of a precent of tectonic forces and fluids.
So, nope, no such thing. It may be earlier by a few seconds, maybe.
2006-07-15 14:08:38 · answer #2 · answered by QFL 24-7 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋