many little earthquakes = one large one?

Question

I am under the impression that many little earthquakes...2.2 here...a couple months later a 2.6..a couple months later a 4.1...for example means pressure is being relieved. But could it also mean a much larger quake is coming?

COME ON??? No one has a clue?

Answer 1

In general that is correct. Many small earthquakes can relieve the stress along plate margins so that a large earthquake won't occur.

Plate tectonics and seismology are far from exact sciences as we are dealing with things we can't see, and are relying on a lot of inferences from geophysics. So most seismologists would agree they would rather see relief of strain by multiple small seismic events than a long period of seismic inactivity which could signal a build-up of stress leading to the "big one!"

You can simulate that by sliding one hand past the other. If you are gentle, you can move one past the other in a series of small steps. But if you press hard, your hands will slide past each other rapidly and a long way - the same thing is happening along transcurrent plate margins (strike-slip faults) such as the San Andreas - Queen Charlotte - Fairweather fault system along the west coast of North America.