Explosive earthquake experiment this week in Coachella Valley

Originally posted by crazydaisy
The knowledge gained from the project is essential to making new and existing structures in the region better able to withstand earthquakes.

AH I get it! They are blasting a new DUMB or a new section of one

reply to post by zorgon


Zorgon you are reaching and smiling behind your monitor,,and you know we know you are smerking,,,,

Hmm... From a scientific perspective, I would say that since each level of the Richter scale is an order of magnitude greater / or less than the next, a few in the 1-2 range at a shallow level should not be able to tip one off to any significant degree. Not to mention that the difference of depth plays a factor as well.

I do believe doing the tests in this particular ares is irresponsible and dangerous. I am sure the odds are very low that a chain reaction from this could cause a larger event but they are not zero. Why not find another less unstable region that has a similar ground composition?

Well...uh because they want to know what the ground does in the area where they are blasting....?
They want to find out what reaction the sediment type soil in the valleys has to the quake...that cant be duplicated elsewhere probly.
Suppose the quake they set off will be very local....it would not be covering a very large area if they plan to use explosives at 60 feet to set it up.
Im sure it is a miniature duplication of what the real thing would be, as close as they can make it...theyll learn a lot with that many sendors out....
Perhaps well see the video of the computer sim when they complete it....maybe on discovery ch one day.....
It will probably be a real time sim of how the ground moves and the waves travel...
It would be upscalable by computer to any size duplication of an area....a great forcasting tool.

Originally posted by nydsdan
I do believe doing the tests in this particular ares is irresponsible and dangerous. I am sure the odds are very low that a chain reaction from this could cause a larger event but they are not zero. Why not find another less unstable region that has a similar ground composition?

I wonder if these are the same morons.... errrr 'scientists' that wanted to drill a hole in the magma bubble under Yellowstone to 'relieve pressure'