Japan’s earthquake shifted balance of the planet

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By Liz Goodwin

– Mon Mar 14, 9:56 am ET

Last week's devastating earthquake and tsunami in Japan has actually moved the island closer to the United States and shifted the planet's axis.

The quake caused a rift 15 miles below the sea floor that stretched 186 miles long and 93 miles wide, according to the AP. The areas closest to the epicenter of the quake jumped a full 13 feet closer to the United States, geophysicist Ross Stein at the United States Geological Survey told The New York Times.




The world's fifth-largest, 8.8 magnitude quake was caused when the Pacific tectonic plate dived under the North American plate, which shifted Eastern Japan towards North America by about 13 feet (see NASA's before and after photos). The quake also shifted the earth's axis by 6.5 inches, shortened the day by 1.6 microseconds, and sank Japan downward by about two feet. As Japan's eastern coastline sunk, the tsunami's waves rolled in.

Why did the quake shorten the day?  The earth's mass shifted towards the center, spurring the planet to spin a bit faster. Last year's massive 8.8 magnitude earthquake in Chile also shortened the day, but by an even smaller fraction of a second. The 2004 Sumatra quake knocked a whopping 6.8 micro-seconds off the day.
After the country's 1995 earthquake, Japan placed high-tech sensors around the country to observe even the slightest movements, which is why scientists are able to calculate the quake's impact down to the inch. "This is overwhelmingly the best-recorded great earthquake ever," Lucy Jones, chief scientist for the Multi-Hazards project at the U.S. Geological Survey, told The Boston Herald.

The tsunami's waves necessitated life-saving evacuations as far away as Chile. Fisherman off the coast of Mexico reported a banner fishing day Friday, and speculated that the tsunami knocked sealife in their direction.

(An energy map provided by NOAA shows the intensity of the tsunami caused by Japan's earthquake: Reuters/NOAA. Below, Satellite image of Japan's coast moving: NASA.)

Solar Storm Hit Earth By Friday And Could Cause Massive Earthquake

Solar flare storm will hit earth by Friday 18, 2011, which could possible cause earthquake as well.

Last year we reported British Defence secretary Liam Fox attend a summit of scientists and security advisers, who believe the infrastructure that underpins modern life in Western economies is potentially vulnerable to electromagnetic disruption. [Link]

Now according to BBC : Scientists around the world will be watching closely as three eruptions from the Sun reach the Earth over Thursday and Friday.These "coronal mass ejections" will slam into the Earth's magnetic shield.

The waves of charged solar particles are the result of three solar flares directed at Earth in recent days, including the most powerful since 2006.

The biggest flares can disrupt technology, including power grids, communications systems and satellites.

Awakening Sun

In 1972, a geomagnetic storm provoked by a solar flare knocked out long-distance telephone communication across the US state of Illinois. And in 1989, another storm plunged six million people into darkness across the Canadian province of Quebec.

Dr Thomson said it was possible infrastructure could be affected this time, but stressed: "The X-flare that was observed the other day was lower in magnitude than similar flares that have been associated with technological damage such as the loss of the Quebec power grid... and even the large magnetic storm in 2003, which caused some damage to satellites in orbit."

Scientists will have around half an hour's notice that the wave of charged particles is about to hit the Earth's magnetic shield.

This is taken from the point at which a Nasa satellite called Ace (the Advanced Composition Explorer) registers the solar radiation on its instruments: "We're sitting waiting for that event to happen," said Dr Thomson.

Researchers say the Sun has been awakening after a period of several years of low activity.

We had many time written about the danger of "Massive Solar Flare Storm and Spacequake" here on earth.

Our latest article about Spacequake which had caused Northern Light and 6.4 Earthquake [Link] on August 4, 2010 explained in detail how Sun Solar Flare trigger earthquake here on earth.

We fear the latest Sun solar flare storm which is set to reach earth by Friday 18, 2011 will not only cause Northern lights but also the Earthquake as well.

Two year back NASA report on Sun solar storm which is carried out for NASA by the US National Academy of Sciences had also warned about upcoming solar Storm in year 2011-2012 too. read it all