Earthquake

[Drew Dowdell]

Felt pretty strong here.... I was 14 stories up at the time. Could see other buildings shaking.

[CSpec]

Pretty strong here in the NoVa DC suburbs. Felt like mild-moderate airplane turbulence.

[Drew Dowdell]

My office has 55" plasmas hanging from the ceiling. They were swaying noticeably.

[GMTruckGuy74]

I'm on the 3^rd floor of a large office building in Princeton (NJ) and we shook pretty good for about 15 seconds.

DC is evacuating right now, seems many buildings in NYC that evacuated are letting people back in (have ABC news on my computer).

[Lamar]

My brother in Richmond, VA (closest major city to the epicenter) definitely felt it. No buildings have been reported as damaged as of yet.

[Drew Dowdell]

I'm seeing reports that a building has collapsed in Richmond, but no more details.

[Robert Hall]

Southern Colorado (near NM border outside Trinidad) had a 5.3 quake last night also.

[Camino LS6]

I was driving at the time, so I didn't feel it. But I did see two large jets with fighter escorts just after the quake.

[Paolino]

My friend in Manhattan actually was swaying pretty badly he said (he gets motion sickness easily), he's on the 18th floor. My parents felt it, and I was in the car at the time so missed it, yet another one.

[CSpec]

Those government wimps in DC all went home this afternoon. Us true office warriors in tree-lined office park land went right back to work and avoided the unholy mess on the roads/subway system. So ha.

[balthazar]

Central Jersey, outside, didn't feel a thing. Had to hear about it via a text. #1 son & I were about a mile from home.

Wife & #2 son were home- they didn't feel it either. Neighborhood must be on a spike of bedrock that goes right down to the Liquid Hot Magma.

Edited August 24, 2011 by balthazar

[ocnblu]

I was walking on a concrete floor in our detail department... didn't feel a thing. My manager and assistant manager were both sitting in the office... they felt it. And of course I got the obligatory emergency call from my mom.

[67impss]

I nor the wife knew about it till the news

[hyperv6]

In my third floor office we were moved here in Ohio. The isles on my floor are named for cars and Shelby was swinging pretty good. some stores in the Canton Ohio area reported items off some shelfs.

What we had we get time to time off of Lake Erie. This one felt like one we had about a year and a half ago.

Nothing beats the one I felt in 1986. I heard a loud boom like a truck crash and then it started to shake. I was at my moms house and the fridge and like were both moving in the kitchen. I though a truck or plane crashed. I have heard other say that sometimes you can hear a boom.

[daves87rs]

Was driving as well....missed it.

[Turbojett]

Heard about it on the news this evening. pretty decent shake, but nothing to get worried about.

But I kept hearing on the news that everybody in the big cities went outside afterward. Not exactly the best idea if stuff is falling from buildings.

...and this is why I always have a dog.

[SAmadei]

Way out at the shore, where we sit on 3000-6500 feet of sand, we get a Jello effect... especially if you are on a highrise that's essentially "floating" on the sand. For most people, it was quite obvious, and they immediately clogged the entire cellular network... which is very scary to me.

For me, I was reading in bed... and suddenly, I was shaking back and forth and I realized I wasn't causing it... Cat went into hiding... Dog started barking. I looked around, thinking someone was pushing the bed, as it stopped... then it started a second, a bit harder... then I realized what was going on and it was over... about 10-15 seconds total.

Cat finally came back out 8 hours later.

[Croc]

Way out at the shore, where we sit on 3000-6500 feet of sand, we get a Jello effect... especially if you are on a highrise that's essentially "floating" on the sand. For most people, it was quite obvious, and they immediately clogged the entire cellular network... which is very scary to me.

For me, I was reading in bed... and suddenly, I was shaking back and forth and I realized I wasn't causing it... Cat went into hiding... Dog started barking. I looked around, thinking someone was pushing the bed, as it stopped... then it started a second, a bit harder... then I realized what was going on and it was over... about 10-15 seconds total.

Cat finally came back out 8 hours later.

That's liquefaction. Can be extremely destructive.

[SAmadei]

That's liquefaction. Can be extremely destructive.

If it went on long enough, certainly. The gamble is that we don't get quakes strong enough to cause it.

Most of the strong quakes have epicenters outside NJ, but what kills me, though, is that we've had 173 quakes that have epicenters in NJ, 40 in the last decade. This list includes none of the 3.0~4.5 quakes I recall from 1984~86, 90, 94 or the two 2010 quakes.

The quake, as most know was centered just NW of Richmond, VA. I wonder if its related to all the rain we got in the last few weeks... its likely Richmond has received as much as PA or NJ.

We're certainly overdue for a big one, hope this was it for a while... as liquefaction, or not, our buildings are not built for even mild earthquakes. Of course, at this point, we're kind of distracted by staring down the gun at Irene... who looks like a lot like 1985's Gloria, if you ask me. We've weathered storms pretty good, but forget that in the past, partial (1/3 of Longport) and whole towns (South Cape May) have been washed away during these storms... such as 1916, 1944, 1962. Where my house is was ocean in 1916. 8-0

[Croc]

That's liquefaction. Can be extremely destructive.

If it went on long enough, certainly. The gamble is that we don't get quakes strong enough to cause it.

Most of the strong quakes have epicenters outside NJ, but what kills me, though, is that we've had 173 quakes that have epicenters in NJ, 40 in the last decade. This list includes none of the 3.0~4.5 quakes I recall from 1984~86, 90, 94 or the two 2010 quakes.

The quake, as most know was centered just NW of Richmond, VA. I wonder if its related to all the rain we got in the last few weeks... its likely Richmond has received as much as PA or NJ.

We're certainly overdue for a big one, hope this was it for a while... as liquefaction, or not, our buildings are not built for even mild earthquakes. Of course, at this point, we're kind of distracted by staring down the gun at Irene... who looks like a lot like 1985's Gloria, if you ask me. We've weathered storms pretty good, but forget that in the past, partial (1/3 of Longport) and whole towns (South Cape May) have been washed away during these storms... such as 1916, 1944, 1962. Where my house is was ocean in 1916. 8-0

Liquefaction has nothing to do with quake strength and has everything to do with soil types/groundwater.

[SAmadei]

Liquefaction has nothing to do with quake strength and has everything to do with soil types/groundwater.

You need the earthquake strength and duration to put sufficient energy into the system to start the liquefaction process. Otherwise, you would get liquefaction without an external source... which isn't happening, as everything is still standing.

I agree soil type/groundwater is very important.

[Croc]

Liquefaction has nothing to do with quake strength and has everything to do with soil types/groundwater.

You need the earthquake strength and duration to put sufficient energy into the system to start the liquefaction process. Otherwise, you would get liquefaction without an external source... which isn't happening, as everything is still standing.

I agree soil type/groundwater is very important.

Beg to differ: when you have soft, uncompacted soils (landfill, sand) and you add water, objects on top of them settle when there are vibrations. The more compacted/less water, the stronger the quake needs to be...but even minor temblors have been known to cause it; early residents of Manhattan Beach, Calif. would sometimes wake up to find the early sidewalks had disappeared overnight, and all that was left was sand.

[hyperv6]

A guy at work made a clip art poster to raise funds for the Ohio Earth Quaker survivors. It had some lawn chairs laying over on their sides. LOL!

Someone needs to make a t shirt and sell it on the web.

[Lamar]

The quake, as most know was centered just NW of Richmond, VA. I wonder if its related to all the rain we got in the last few weeks... its likely Richmond has received as much as PA or NJ.

Weather and seismic activity have nothing to do with one another.

[Satty]

A guy at work made a clip art poster to raise funds for the Ohio Earth Quaker survivors. It had some lawn chairs laying over on their sides. LOL!

Someone needs to make a t shirt and sell it on the web.

A friend of mine in MO put something along those lines up in Facebook yesterday. I felt it, a few minutes later I got a text from my wife saying, "the f@#k was that?"

[RjION]

Damn I didn't feel a thing.

[Croc]

The quake, as most know was centered just NW of Richmond, VA. I wonder if its related to all the rain we got in the last few weeks... its likely Richmond has received as much as PA or NJ.

Weather and seismic activity have nothing to do with one another.

Mostly. There does appear to be some kind of link between large subsurface radon gas releases and brilliant red-orange sunrises/sunsets shortly before a quake, but nothing definite. Just prior to the Japan quake, atmospheric radon levels skyrocketed over Japan.

[FUTURE_OF_GM]

Felt it here in Charlotte...

Parents felt it even better in Asheville.

[Robert Hall]

The quake, as most know was centered just NW of Richmond, VA. I wonder if its related to all the rain we got in the last few weeks... its likely Richmond has received as much as PA or NJ.

Weather and seismic activity have nothing to do with one another.

Mostly. There does appear to be some kind of link between large subsurface radon gas releases and brilliant red-orange sunrises/sunsets shortly before a quake, but nothing definite. Just prior to the Japan quake, atmospheric radon levels skyrocketed over Japan.

I've read that. Conspiracy theorists believe the radon gas is released by the earthquake machines when they are used (i.e. the theory being the US government has earthquake machines (the HAARP array is part of it) to cause earthquakes to influence political/economic changes..

[Lamar]

The quake, as most know was centered just NW of Richmond, VA. I wonder if its related to all the rain we got in the last few weeks... its likely Richmond has received as much as PA or NJ.

Weather and seismic activity have nothing to do with one another.

Mostly. There does appear to be some kind of link between large subsurface radon gas releases and brilliant red-orange sunrises/sunsets shortly before a quake, but nothing definite. Just prior to the Japan quake, atmospheric radon levels skyrocketed over Japan.

Interesting. However, sunrises/sunsets aren't considered to be weather related either for the most part.

On the other hand, some have said that the escape of radon into the atmosphere after seismic events can increase humidity and temperature. But since temperature and humidity fluctuate quite often, one would have to have instruments in place all the time just to measure the amount of radon in the atmosphere any time they spiked. Doesn't seem consistent enough to be a reliable predictor.

[SAmadei]

Beg to differ: when you have soft, uncompacted soils (landfill, sand) and you add water, objects on top of them settle when there are vibrations. The more compacted/less water, the stronger the quake needs to be...but even minor temblors have been known to cause it; early residents of Manhattan Beach, Calif. would sometimes wake up to find the early sidewalks had disappeared overnight, and all that was left was sand.

Well, actually, my sidewalk is disappearing... but its taking since 1977 to do it. Of course there is vibration around it constantly... cars driving by, the street sweeper, my lawnmower, people walking on it. If we got a massive quake, I'm sure it would be gone... along with the neighborhood.

The quake, as most know was centered just NW of Richmond, VA. I wonder if its related to all the rain we got in the last few weeks... its likely Richmond has received as much as PA or NJ.

Weather and seismic activity have nothing to do with one another.

Sure they could. But I'm not suggesting anything like the myth of "earthquake weather". I'm talking about weather the causes massive flooding, overfull aquifiers, saturated rock that might act as a trigger. Keep in mind that the entire east coast is slowly rising due to the removal of the last Ice Age's icesheet... the oilcanning of the bedrock certainly is the cause of some minor East Coast quakes. That is weather related. If that can happen on a large scale, I'm sure smaller scale flooding could have similar effects of a weak bit of bedrock. We've gotten a LOT a rain recently.

Keep in mind that the weight of Taipei 101 is being blamed for two earthquakes. If that building can weigh down a fault, a massive quantity of water could do the same thing.

[Paolino]

What really annoys me is the sensationalism behind this. The news the other night said, "NYC took a 6.0 and is relatively undamaged!" No. I can guarantee it didn't take a 6.0. Hundreds of miles away got a 6.0. And if NYC got hit by a 6.0, I'm thinking half the city would be leveled.

[Robert Hall]

What really annoys me is the sensationalism behind this. The news the other night said, "NYC took a 6.0 and is relatively undamaged!" No. I can guarantee it didn't take a 6.0. Hundreds of miles away got a 6.0. And if NYC got hit by a 6.0, I'm thinking half the city would be leveled.

Yeah, lots of hype in the media..I guess it's because earthquakes are rare on the East Coast while they are pretty common on the West Coast. And now the East is bracing for a hurricane (sounds like it missed my old home area, the Florida Keys).

[Lamar]

OK, I thought you were initially talking about "earthquake weather." I gotcha.

[Drew Dowdell]

Nearly every anti-gay group out there issued press releases saying that God caused an earthquake in Virginia because of the gay marriage law passing in New York.

[Robert Hall]

Nearly every anti-gay group out there issued press releases saying that God caused an earthquake in Virginia because of the gay marriage law passing in New York.

Wow...amazing. The depth of the stupidity of some of the religious right continues to amaze me. It's one thing to be spiritual, it's another to be bat-sh*t crazy delusional. These people are dangerous.

Edited August 25, 2011 by Cubical-aka-Moltar

[Drew Dowdell]

Anyone interested in the science behind the virginia quake, a very good writeup here.