Strange Seismic Waves That Shook the World
By James Donahue
On the morning of November 11, 2018, something odd occurred off the tiny island of Mayotte, just off the northern tip of Madagascar in the Indian Ocean. Whatever it was it triggered powerful seismic waves that raced completely around the world, shaking this planet for about 20 minutes. What was strange is that the power of the wave was not felt, heard or noticed by anybody above ground.
The low frequency wave was recorded in sensitive instruments but it whisked by world earthquake detectors. It swept across Africa setting off sensors in Zambia, Kenya and Ethiopia. It raced around the world triggering devices in New Zealand, Chile, the United States, Canada and the Hawaiian Islands.
It might have passed unnoticed but for a New Zealand earthquake enthusiast, known as @matarikipax, who spotted unusual seismology readings from the United States Geological Survey. He posted the phenomenon on Twitter and the message triggered a world-wide observation. The wave was so strong that detection instruments recorded it from 11,000 miles away.
These are the things known about the Nov. 11 incident. What is unknown is what caused the wave and what it means. Is it a natural Earth phenomenon that occurs regularly but was only detected this time by happenstance? Was it a secret military weapon being tested in a remote part of the world?
In their rush to determine answers to the above questions world scientists have been quick to blame underwater volcanic activity.
Seismologist Goran Ekstrom of Columbia University, a researcher who studies unusual earthquake activity, said he has never experienced anything like this. “Many features of the waves are remarkably weird – from their surprisingly monotone, low-frequency “ring” to their global spread.”
Independent seismologist Anthony Lomax noted that “ongoing low-level seismic activity” has been occurring at Mayotte Island since May, 2018. He suggested that “inflation/deflation and collapse of volcano calderas and movement of magma under a volcano can produce a wide variety of seismic signals, including long periods and repetitive waves like those observed Nov. 11.”
Researcher Stephen Hicks at University of Southampton noted that a magnitude 5.8 earthquake occurred at the Mayotte site in May. He said that earthquakes unleash high frequency seismic waves much unlike the waves detected on Nov. 11. Thus he tends to agree with Lomax that the culprit was probably some kind of shift in magma or a plate deep at the bottom of the ocean.
Hicks told Science Magazine: “Such low frequency rumbles are rare but not unheard of. Scientists have detected them before after glacier calving, landslides and sudden shifts of magma beneath volcanoes. There are no glaciers near Mayotte and an underwater landslide would have been picked up by hydrophones in the surrounding ocean. That leaves a magma shift somewhere under the seabed as the prime culprit.”
Geoscientist Pierre Briole at Ecole Normale Superieure in Paris also blames a magma shift. He said he believes a massive amount of magma may have drained from a volcanic chamber under the seafloor. This then unleashed deep vibrations when its roof collapsed.
Notice that nobody wants to blame the military.
By James Donahue
On the morning of November 11, 2018, something odd occurred off the tiny island of Mayotte, just off the northern tip of Madagascar in the Indian Ocean. Whatever it was it triggered powerful seismic waves that raced completely around the world, shaking this planet for about 20 minutes. What was strange is that the power of the wave was not felt, heard or noticed by anybody above ground.
The low frequency wave was recorded in sensitive instruments but it whisked by world earthquake detectors. It swept across Africa setting off sensors in Zambia, Kenya and Ethiopia. It raced around the world triggering devices in New Zealand, Chile, the United States, Canada and the Hawaiian Islands.
It might have passed unnoticed but for a New Zealand earthquake enthusiast, known as @matarikipax, who spotted unusual seismology readings from the United States Geological Survey. He posted the phenomenon on Twitter and the message triggered a world-wide observation. The wave was so strong that detection instruments recorded it from 11,000 miles away.
These are the things known about the Nov. 11 incident. What is unknown is what caused the wave and what it means. Is it a natural Earth phenomenon that occurs regularly but was only detected this time by happenstance? Was it a secret military weapon being tested in a remote part of the world?
In their rush to determine answers to the above questions world scientists have been quick to blame underwater volcanic activity.
Seismologist Goran Ekstrom of Columbia University, a researcher who studies unusual earthquake activity, said he has never experienced anything like this. “Many features of the waves are remarkably weird – from their surprisingly monotone, low-frequency “ring” to their global spread.”
Independent seismologist Anthony Lomax noted that “ongoing low-level seismic activity” has been occurring at Mayotte Island since May, 2018. He suggested that “inflation/deflation and collapse of volcano calderas and movement of magma under a volcano can produce a wide variety of seismic signals, including long periods and repetitive waves like those observed Nov. 11.”
Researcher Stephen Hicks at University of Southampton noted that a magnitude 5.8 earthquake occurred at the Mayotte site in May. He said that earthquakes unleash high frequency seismic waves much unlike the waves detected on Nov. 11. Thus he tends to agree with Lomax that the culprit was probably some kind of shift in magma or a plate deep at the bottom of the ocean.
Hicks told Science Magazine: “Such low frequency rumbles are rare but not unheard of. Scientists have detected them before after glacier calving, landslides and sudden shifts of magma beneath volcanoes. There are no glaciers near Mayotte and an underwater landslide would have been picked up by hydrophones in the surrounding ocean. That leaves a magma shift somewhere under the seabed as the prime culprit.”
Geoscientist Pierre Briole at Ecole Normale Superieure in Paris also blames a magma shift. He said he believes a massive amount of magma may have drained from a volcanic chamber under the seafloor. This then unleashed deep vibrations when its roof collapsed.
Notice that nobody wants to blame the military.