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Thread: NASA: Indonesian Earthquake changed Earth's rotation, moved the North Pole

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    Smells Like Teen Spirit jmcclain19's Avatar
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    NASA: Indonesian Earthquake changed Earth's rotation, moved the North Pole

    http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/050110/dcm017_1.html

    NASA Details Earthquake Affects on the Earth
    Monday January 10, 11:26 am ET


    WASHINGTON, Jan. 10 /PRNewswire/ -- NASA scientists using data from the Indonesian earthquake calculated it affected Earth's rotation, decreased the length of day, slightly changed the planet's shape, and shifted the North Pole by centimeters. The earthquake that created the huge tsunami also changed the Earth's rotation.
    Dr. Benjamin Fong Chao, of NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md. and Dr. Richard Gross of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. said all earthquakes have some affect on Earth's rotation. It's just they are usually barely noticeable.

    "Any worldly event that involves the movement of mass affects the Earth's rotation, from seasonal weather down to driving a car," Chao said.

    Chao and Gross have been routinely calculating earthquakes' effects in changing the Earth's rotation in both length-of-day as well as changes in Earth's gravitational field. They also study changes in polar motion that is shifting the North Pole. The "mean North pole" was shifted by about 2.5 centimeters (1 inch) in the direction of 145 degrees East Latitude. This shift east is continuing a long-term seismic trend identified in previous studies.

    They also found the earthquake decreased the length of day by 2.68 microseconds. Physically this is like a spinning skater drawing arms closer to the body resulting in a faster spin. The quake also affected the Earth's shape. They found Earth's oblateness (flattening on the top and bulging at the equator) decreased by a small amount. It decreased about one part in 10 billion, continuing the trend of earthquakes making Earth less oblate.

    To make a comparison about the mass that was shifted as a result of the earthquake, and how it affected the Earth, Chao compares it to the great Three-Gorge reservoir of China. If filled the gorge would hold 40 cubic kilometers (10 trillion gallons) of water. That shift of mass would increase the length of day by only 0.06 microseconds and make the Earth only very slightly more round in the middle and flat on the top. It would shift the pole position by about two centimeters (0.8 inch).

    The researchers concluded the Sumatra earthquake caused a length of day (LOD) change too small to detect, but it can be calculated. It also caused an oblateness change barely detectable, and a pole shift large enough to be possibly identified. They hope to detect the LOD signal and pole shift when Earth rotation data from ground based and space-borne position sensors are reviewed.

    The researchers used data from the Harvard University Centroid Moment Tensor database that catalogs large earthquakes. The data is calculated in a set of formulas, and the results are reported and updated on a NASA Web site.

    The massive earthquake off the west coast of Indonesia on December 26, 2004, registered a magnitude of nine on the new "moment" scale (modified Richter scale) that indicates the size of earthquakes. It was the fourth largest earthquake in one hundred years and largest since the 1964 Prince William Sound, Alaska earthquake.

    The devastating mega thrust earthquake occurred as a result of the India and Burma plates coming together. It was caused by the release of stresses that developed as the India plate slid beneath the overriding Burma plate. The fault dislocation, or earthquake, consisted of a downward sliding of one plate relative to the overlying plate. The net effect was a slightly more compact Earth. The India plate began its descent into the mantle at the Sunda trench that lies west of the earthquake's epicenter. For information and images on the Web, visit:

    http://www.nasa.gov/vision/earth/loo...sia_quake.html
    Last edited by jmcclain19; 01-10-2005 at 06:57 PM.


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  3. #2
    SERP Emeritus paintmered's Avatar
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    Re: NASA: Indonesia Earthquake changed Earth's rotation, moved the North Pole



    That is some fascinating stuff.
    All models are wrong. Some of them are useful.

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    Dunnilicious creek14's Avatar
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    Re: NASA: Indonesian Earthquake changed Earth's rotation, moved the North Pole

    I watched a show about the quake, tsunami, and pole shift on The Science Channel a couple of days ago. Really interesting stuff.
    Will trade this space for a #1 starter.

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    Member CougarQuest's Avatar
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    Re: NASA: Indonesian Earthquake changed Earth's rotation, moved the North Pole

    You know, I thought my toilet water was swirling the wrong way
    Artificial intelligence is no match for natural stupidity.

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    Goober GAC's Avatar
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    Re: NASA: Indonesian Earthquake changed Earth's rotation, moved the North Pole

    Quote Originally Posted by CougarQuest
    You know, I thought my toilet water was swirling the wrong way
    That wasn't a tsunami that caused that.
    "In my day you had musicians who experimented with drugs. Now it's druggies experimenting with music" - Alfred G Clark (circa 1972)

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    Be the ball Roy Tucker's Avatar
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    Re: NASA: Indonesian Earthquake changed Earth's rotation, moved the North Pole

    If you're interested in this area, I recommend the book "Krakatoa: The Day the World Exploded" by Simon Winchester. It's about the 1883 eruption of Krakatoa in Indonesia, subsequent tsunami, climate changes, etc. I read it a few months back. Great stuff.
    She used to wake me up with coffee ever morning

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    RZ Chamber of Commerce Unassisted's Avatar
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    Re: NASA: Indonesian Earthquake changed Earth's rotation, moved the North Pole

    Now that the day is measurably shorter, slacking employees and students all over the world have been handed the perfect excuse to miss deadlines.

    "Well... I would have turned that in on time, but the days are shorter now, and that took away from the time I had to complete it."
    /r/reds

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    Member traderumor's Avatar
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    Re: NASA: Indonesian Earthquake changed Earth's rotation, moved the North Pole

    Wonder if Santa is disoriented?
    "Rounding 3rd and heading for home, good night everybody"


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