Monitoring, predicting and warning of tectonic Hazard

Question 1

How can you predict earthquakes

Answer 1

Monitor changes in movements along a fault
- Laser reflector
- Creep metre
- Tilt meter
Seismographs-recording smaller foreshocks
radon gas meter- increased radon gas before earthquake

Question 2

What is the USGS and what do they do

Answer 2

United States Geological Survey
They suggest a earthquake prediction must predict
- Date and time
- Location
- Magnitude

Question 3

Evaluation of Earthquake predicting

Answer 3

No prediction has yet been made that meets all three needs of the USGS

Question 4

The 1975 Haicheng case study

Answer 4

Prediction was made on multiple readings of small minor earthquakes, lead to many sleeping outside. When the earthquake came many of lives were saved from building collapse etc. providing an argument that you can predict earthquakes. However the next year there was another earthquake the Great Tangshan earthquake was not predicted and thousands of people lost their lives

Question 5

How can you predict volcanoes

Answer 5

Gas emissions
Lahar monitoring
Thermal changes- increased hot springs temp more chance of event

Question 6

The Mt Pinatubo 1991 case study

Answer 6

Evacuation generated by the prediction of tectonic event lead to an evacuation of the most hazardous zone two months before the event, closer to the date increased warning of a imminent major eruption lead to the evacuation of a wider area 2 days before the event. Proving you can predict volcanoes, However much like earthquakes there still have been no predictions that meet all 3 USGS targets

Question 7

How can you predict Tsunamis

Answer 7

Monitoring undersea seismic activity i.e. detection buoys, pressure records, tide gauges are used to record change that show a tsunami is likely to occur

Question 8

What happens once a tsunami is detected

Answer 8

The pacific tsunami warning system has been releasing warnings of tsunamis for 70 years to mitigate threat