Why are there so much earthquakes lately

[French jurist]

Well over 8.0 from 1990 - 1999: 6
And 2000-2010: 14

http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eqarchives/year/info_1990s.php
http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eqarchives/year/eqstats.php

That's more than the double with 4 of them in 2007 alone. Quite unprecedented that I know. Although I can't seem to find similar statistics starting from last century.

Not a dramatic increase to me, just variance.
If you compare 1994-1995 (4 above 8) and 2008-2009 (1 above 8) then it's a coef. 4 difference.

It's not the best comparison but once in a casino, at the roulette, red came out like 40 times in a row (that's the world record).

 

[mini]

From USGS:
Are Earthquakes Really on the Increase?


We continue to be asked by many people throughout the world if earthquakes are on the increase. Although it may seem that we are having more earthquakes, earthquakes of magnitude 7.0 or greater have remained fairly constant.
A partial explanation may lie in the fact that in the last twenty years, we have definitely had an increase in the number of earthquakes we have been able to locate each year. This is because of the tremendous increase in the number of seismograph stations in the world and the many improvements in global communications. In 1931, there were about 350 stations operating in the world; today, there are more than 8,000 stations and the data now comes in rapidly from these stations by electronic mail, internet and satellite. This increase in the number of stations and the more timely receipt of data has allowed us and other seismological centers to locate earthquakes more rapidly and to locate many small earthquakes which were undetected in earlier years. The NEIC now locates about 20,000 earthquakes each year or approximately 50 per day. Also, because of the improvements in communications and the increased interest in the environment and natural disasters, the public now learns about more earthquakes.
According to long-term records (since about 1900), we expect about 17 major earthquakes (7.0 - 7.9) and one great earthquake (8.0 or above) in any given year

Let me just repeat what Moxon posted. It's a little tiny bit important.

 

[orwellian]

Not a dramatic increase to me, just variance.
If you compare 1994-1995 (4 above 8) and 2008-2009 (1 above 8) then it's a coef. 4 difference.

It's not the best comparison but once in a casino, at the roulette, red came out like 40 times in a row (that's the world record).

More than double does not seem like a dramatic increase to you? I'd like to see the statistics prior to 1990.

Let me just repeat what Moxon posted. It's a little tiny bit important.

How does that relate at all to what I was saying? Are you seriously suggesting that there were 8.0 earthquakes that weren't registered due to not having the equipment prior to the year 2000 to do so?

 

[SaraSara]

Surely, either the CIA or the NSA are triggering those earthquakes in pursuit of their secret and nefarious goals.

After all, everyone knows what can be expected from that Satanic Empire, the United States of America...!

 

[perry]

If we track the weather events of the last years there have been many records broken but as this topic is about earthquakes we will stick with this .

The graph posted by JP clearly shows that from 1980 to 1990 4 earthquakes were over 8 on the richter scale

From 1990 to 2000 that figure reached 6 earthquakes over 8

From 2000 to 2010 that figured reached 14 over 8 .

Now if that is not a trend I do not what is .

 

[jp]

I'm not sure they're claiming to have an exhaustive knowledge of all the earthquakes to have ever happened. As has been posted, and reposted - the cooperation between states, sharing of data, speed of communication and measurement systems have improved over the years.

Its only really the conspiracy peeps pushing the "more earthquakes" angle, ignoring the analysis of the science peeps. Whats the point of putting faith in USGS data if you then ignore their analysis?

Whilst its always worth looking at the raw data to see whats going on, its generally a lot safer to side with the expert opinion of the people gathering it than make speculative conclusions, which may often be based on misinterpretations of the raw data.

 

[mini]

If we track the weather events of the last years there have been many records broken but as this topic is about earthquakes we will stick with this .

The graph posted by JP clearly shows that from 1980 to 1990 4 earthquakes were over 8 on the richter scale

From 1990 to 2000 that figure reached 6 earthquakes over 8

From 2000 to 2010 that figured reached 14 over 8 .

Now if that is not a trend I do not what is .

Yeah. It means they are much better able to LOCATE, DOCUMENT and MEASURE earthquakes. I mean how well do you think they were able to do that when the Great Earthquake of Lisbon happened?

 

[mini]

Its only really the conspiracy peeps pushing the "more earthquakes" angle, ignoring the analysis of the science peeps. Whats the point of putting faith in USGS data if you then ignore their analysis?

Just keel the peeps!!
http://100waystokillapeep.blogspot.com/

 

[French jurist]

More than double does not seem like a dramatic increase to you? I'd like to see the statistics prior to 1990.

More than double ... is just more than double !
The real question is : is this increase in earthquakes above 8 a statistical anomaly or not.

Just to keep up with weird comparisons, let's now consider hold'em poker : a constant player has winning and losing streaks that can extend over a long period of time. While some players will yell "rigged !", some other will say to themselves that it's just a cycle (I agree, in both cases you have to buy a new mouse, but that's not the issue).

And while any major earthquake is by essence dramatic, such an increase does not seem dramatic to me.

I love those threads by the way, it makes me remember of a Monty Python scene in Holy Grail : King Arthur and its troops discussing with a guard in a castle about african & european swallows and their abilities to carry coconuts, a classic : "are you suggesting coconuts migrate ?"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rzcLQRXW6B0

 

[esllou]

If we track the weather events of the last years there have been many records broken but as this topic is about earthquakes we will stick with this .

The graph posted by JP clearly shows that from 1980 to 1990 4 earthquakes were over 8 on the richter scale

From 1990 to 2000 that figure reached 6 earthquakes over 8

From 2000 to 2010 that figured reached 14 over 8 .

Now if that is not a trend I do not what is .

their own figures on the left state there is an average of one 8+ earthquake per year. That is based on a long term average...since 1900 I believe. Therefore the question you should be asking is "why were the 80s so quiet in regards to 8+ earthquakes?"

ah, but that's not quite so "sexy", is it?

The 2000s decade, going by the USGS's own long term average, should have produced ten 8+ earthquakes. There were 13. That is statistically insignificant. You can't compare one decade with two historically quiet decades and start making comparisons. You have to compare all of them with the long term average and once you do that, your "zionist republican sarah palin lovers' conspiracy to rule the world" theory falls shame-faced into a crack in the earth.