EARTHQUAKES Worldwide! (Frequently Updated)

As of late, I have observed that USGS and EMSC are a bit lax on their reports of earthquakes. Sometimes not seeing anything reported for hours from the last update, or seeing periods of 90-200 minutes with no earthquakes in between. My question is, are they leaving swarms of earthquakes out of their reports, or there are actually periods of no earthquakes?

SOZT: Greater than 90% of the earthquake activity is being altered by the USGS at present, which is under orders to prevent any clue being given to the public about the Earth changes caused by the presence of Planet X. Over a decade ago, the approach was to de-sensitize the live seismographs periodically, so the displays do not turn black worldwide, and to ignore the twice-a-day patterns showing up on these seismographs. Then any quakes that could be dropped were dropped. This was obvious to some who were watching the database manipulation. Quakes in the list would suddenly disappear. This was particularly the case where a quake happened in a remote location, or out in the ocean. Dumbing down the magnitude quickly followed, but in order to ensure the public did not notice, the USGS took control of all websites reporting quake statistics. At times, this control breaks, and discrepancies are reported to the public. Some countries rebel. Quake swarms are another source of control, as they pepper the databases with many quakes and skew the statistics, and thus are pulled from the database. Else the question is raised, why so many? EOZT

ZetaTalk Jun 18, 2011

Will the USGS internet system be a reliable warning system for the European tsunami by registering on the net the New Madrid earthquake on the exact time it occurs?

SOZT: It will not be a lack of information from the USGS that will be the point of confusion during the earthquakes leading up to the New Madrid adjustment, it will be knowing which quake is the big one vs the many minor quakes preceding it. The USGS downgrades almost all earthquakes, to prevent meaningful statistics from being generated from their databases. They also exclude quakes whenever they can, but this is unlikely to happen in the New Madrid area as it is in the center of a populated land mass. Thus you will have magnitude 6 quakes that will be called a 5.2, magnitude 7 quakes called a 6.1, and when a magnitude 8 or greater quake occurs, it will be called a 6.9.

We would advise that rather than watching the USGS quake statistics, that you watch the Earth changes. The adjustment that will incite the European tsunami will involve bridges on the Mississippi breaking, and being impassable. The land to the west of the Mississippi will drop so that the Mississippi will become 50 miles wide in the state of Mississippi. Watch for this. The New Madrid adjustment will be several large quakes of magnitude 8-9, though will be listed as a lesser magnitude. As the N American continent continues to unzip up to and along the Seaway, the quakes will be less than a magnitude 8 but very destructive to Cleveland and Toledo and Buffalo and the inland locks along the Seaway. Thus it is not what the USGS says that should be watched, but the condition of the bridges on the Mississippi, the impact on the cities along the Seaway, and whether the inland locks are reported as inoperable. EOZT

Please collect earthquake-reports here. Significant Quakes or Magnitude 7+ can be posted separately.

[Edited by the Moderation]

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Comment by jorge namour on May 22, 2015 at 4:52am: Felt earthquake M4.3 in ENGLAND, UNITED KINGDOM 38 minutes ago EMSC

M 4.3 - ENGLAND, UNITED KINGDOM - 2015-05-22 01:52:15 UTC
http://www.emsc-csem.org/Earthquake/earthquake.php?id=443215

Magnitude ML 4.3
Region ENGLAND, UNITED KINGDOM
Date time 2015-05-22 01:52:15.1 UTC
Location 51.32 N ; 1.27 E
Depth 2 km
Distances 97 km E of City of London, United Kingdom / pop: 7,556,900 / local time: 02:52:15.1 2015-05-22
46 km SE of Southend-on-Sea, United Kingdom / pop: 163,377 / local time: 02:52:15.1 2015-05-22
5 km N of Ash, United Kingdom / pop: 2,767 / local time: 02:52:15.1 2015-05-22

M 6.0 - SOLOMON ISLANDS - 2015-05-21 19:32:59 UTC
http://www.emsc-csem.org/Earthquake/earthquake.php?id=443181

M 4.6 - IONIAN SEA - 2015-05-21 15:31:21 UTC
http://www.emsc-csem.org/Earthquake/earthquake.php?id=443150

.2 70km NW of Petit Valley, Trinidad and Tobago 2015-05-21 13:25:28 UTC 68.8 km
http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/us10002b3s#general...

3.3 14km WNW of Calipatria, California 2015-05-21 05:06:12 UTC 3.4 km
2.8 6km WNW of Helena, Oklahoma 2015-05-21 04:12:02 UTC 5.0 km
2.6 13km WNW of Calipatria, California 2015-05-21 03:52:23 UTC 3.7 km
3.3 14km WNW of Calipatria, California 2015-05-21 03:51:02 UTC 3.5 km
2.8 13km WNW of Calipatria, California 2015-05-21 03:19:18 UTC 5.7 km
2.9 13km WNW of Calipatria, California 2015-05-21 03:18:07 UTC 5.5 km
4.1 14km NNW of Westmorland, California 2015-05-21 03:15:29 UTC 3.5 kmUSGS
EMSC SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/ci37166079#general...

http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/map/

Comment by jorge namour on May 21, 2015 at 1:03am: 6.9 178km W of Lata, Solomon Islands 2015-05-20 22:48:57 UTC 10.0 km
http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/at00noo7dl#general...

Comment by Carlos on May 19, 2015 at 7:32pm: 6.5 2015-05-19 15:25:21 (UTC) 54.301°S 132.110°W 12.1 Km (7.5 Miles) Pacific-Antartctic Ridge

http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/us10002aj3#general...

Comment by jorge namour on May 18, 2015 at 9:18pm: Felt earthquake M3.3 in NORTHERN TEXAS 33 minutes ago EMSC
3.3 5km SSW of Farmers Branch, Texas 2015-05-18 18:14:29 UTC 5.0 km http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/us10002a93#general...

http://thescoopblog.dallasnews.com/2015/05/3-3-magnitude-quake-ratt...

3.3-magnitude quake rattles Luna Vista Golf Course in NW Dallas Monday
Published: May 18, 2015

These quakes are strange things: A few of us at The Dallas Morning News felt the one that rumbled through at 1:14 p.m., while most in the newsroom did not.

As Mark Petersen, chief of the USGS National Seismic Hazard Modeling Project in Golden, Colo., told us just a few days ago: “We should understand that some parts of Texas are in earthquake country now.”

http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/map/

3.2 7km SE of Challis, Idaho 2015-05-18 15:22:56 UTC 5.9 km
http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/us10002a7a#general...

3.1 33km WNW of Fort Stockton, Texas 2015-05-17 22:15:14 UTC 5.0 km
http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/us10002a1s#general...

4.0 84km S of Sanderson, Texas 2015-05-14 17:41:14 UTC 15.8 km
http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/us1000290e#general...

2.5 21km WNW of Bull Shoals, Arkansas 2015-05-13 13:07:30 UTC 0.3 km
http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/nm60101171#general...

5.8 151km SW of Panguna, Papua New Guinea 2015-05-18 17:04:52 UTC 8.1 km
http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/us10002a8f#general...

2015-05-18 16:46:40.1
34.48 N 73.81 E 56 4.3 PAKISTAN

4.5 89km WNW of Iquique, Chile 2015-05-18 14:21:29 UTC 20.6 km

4.2 181km SSE of Saparua, Indonesia 2015-05-18 13:57:40 UTC 238.8 km
4.7 67km W of Tobelo, Indonesia 2015-05-18 12:45:44 UTC 132.4 km

4.8 74km ESE of L'Esperance Rock, New Zealand 2015-05-18 06:43:26 UTC 10.0 km

4.9 Carlsberg Ridge 2015-05-18 05:49:11 UTC 10.0 km
http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/us10002a4f#general...

4.6 291km SE of Hachijo-jima, Japan 2015-05-18 05:03:41 UTC 18.0 km

5.5 Mid-Indian Ridge 2015-05-18 04:02:45 UTC 10.0 km
http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/us10002a3x#general...

4.5 30km W of Agrihan, Northern Mariana Islands 2015-05-18 02:39:38 UTC 264.6 km

3.2 81km ESE of Maneadero, B.C., Mexico 2015-05-18 00:06:16 UTC 6.4 km

2.6 5km S of Volcano, Hawaii 2015-05-17 22:20:56 UTC 1.5 km
2.8 5km S of Volcano, Hawaii 2015-05-17 20:58:47 UTC 1.3 km
3.1 6km S of Kapaau, Hawaii 2015-05-17 20:17:24 UTC 10.6 km

5.4 East of the South Sandwich Islands 2015-05-17 19:43:34 UTC 11.7 km
http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/us10002a0q#general...

http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/map/

Magnitude mb 4.6
Region IZU ISLANDS, JAPAN REGION
Date time 2015-05-18 05:03:41.2 UTC
Location 31.32 N ; 142.09 E
Depth 18 km

Magnitude mb 5.1
Region OFF COAST OF PAKISTAN
Date time 2015-05-17 11:16:53.7 UTC
Location 23.83 N ; 61.33 E
Depth 30 km http://www.emsc-csem.org/Earthquake/earthquake.php?id=442481

Magnitude M 5.4
Region SANTA CRUZ ISLANDS
Date time 2015-05-17 08:52:41.6 UTC
Location 12.47 S ; 165.40 E
Depth 10 km

Magnitude M 5.2
Region LA RIOJA, ARGENTINA
Date time 2015-05-17 07:09:29.1 UTC
Location 28.88 S ; 68.06 W
Depth 10 km

Magnitude mb 4.7
Region CRETE, GREECE
Date time 2015-05-17 04:08:51.4 UTC
Location 34.45 N ; 26.33 E
Depth 60 km

Magnitude 5.0
Region NEW BRITAIN REGION, P.N.G.
Date time 2015-05-17 03:56:13.1 UTC
Location 4.33 S ; 152.13 E
Depth 2 km

Magnitude mb 4.6
Region NEAR N COAST OF NEW GUINEA, PNG.
Date time 2015-05-17 01:54:34.2 UTC
Location 2.87 S ; 142.02 E
Depth 30 km

Magnitude mb 5.0
Region NEW BRITAIN REGION, P.N.G.
Date time 2015-05-17 00:56:48.0 UTC
Location 4.34 S ; 152.19 E
Depth 2 km

Magnitude mb 4.5
Region COLOMBIA
Date time 2015-05-16 09:00:55.8 UTC
Location 5.45 N ; 72.90 W
Depth 10 km

Magnitude M 4.5
Region OFF E. COAST OF N. ISLAND, N.Z.
Date time 2015-05-16 07:05:01.2 UTC
Location 35.84 S ; 179.09 E
Depth 248 km

Magnitude mb 5.1
Region NORTHERN PERU
Date time 2015-05-16 01:19:51.9 UTC
Location 7.85 S ; 74.32 W
Depth 158 km

Magnitude mb 4.9
Region GUATEMALA
Date time 2015-05-15 22:21:00.3 UTC
Location 14.22 N ; 91.77 W
Depth 60 km

Magnitude 6.0
Region SOUTHERN SUMATRA, INDONESIA
Date time 2015-05-15 20:26:56.4 UTC
Location 2.66 S ; 102.12 E
Depth 152 km http://www.emsc-csem.org/Earthquake/earthquake.php?id=442226

Magnitude 5.1
Region EAST OF NORTH ISLAND, N.Z.
Date time 2015-05-15 15:40:28.9 UTC
Location 35.31 S ; 179.08 W
Depth 40 km

http://www.emsc-csem.org/Earthquake/?view=1

Comment by Mark on May 17, 2015 at 6:42pm: Nepal quake death toll becomes highest on record; dozens still missing

http://news.yahoo.com/nepal-quake-death-toll-becomes-highest-record...

KATHMANDU (Reuters) - The number of people killed in Nepal by two major earthquakes has surpassed 8,500, making the disaster the deadliest to hit the Himalayan country on record, as rescuers on Sunday searched for dozens of people still missing in remote villages.

A 7.8-magnitude earthquake hit Nepal on April 25, killing thousands and demolishing more than half a million homes, most of them in rural areas cut off from emergency medical care.

A second major quake struck on Tuesday 76 kilometers (47 miles) east of the capital Kathmandu, just as Nepalis were beginning to recover from the previous earthquake.

The death toll from the two quakes now stands at 8,583, the home ministry said on Sunday.

The previous deadliest earthquake to strike the country - in 1934 - killed at least 8,519 in Nepal, as well as thousands more in neighboring India.

In Dolakha district east of Kathmandu, which was hit hardest by the second quake, dozens of landslides have blocked access to remote villages.

Comment by Kris H on May 15, 2015 at 3:59am: Two EQ on Jorge's prior post stand out to me. The 5.1 in Nicaragua and the 4.6 in St. Lucia shortly after. These are slightly bigger than what has been happening in that region lately, and they seem to be about the same latitude on either side of the Caribbean plate. I can picture it tilting toward S. America, like a hinge. Maybe that's not exactly how it works, but seems significant.

Comment by jorge namour on May 14, 2015 at 6:40pm: 5.4 117km SSW of Jiwani, Pakistan 2015-05-14 16:01:20 UTC 12.4 km

5.1 85km W of Vallenar, Chile 2015-05-14 15:08:01 UTC
9.0 km http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/us100028yq#general...
2015-05-14 15:22:23.0
28.77 S 71.27 W 21 4.0 ATACAMA, CHILE
2015-05-14 15:20:09.0
28.79 S 71.24 W 23 3.3 ATACAMA, CHILE

4.6 53km E of Dennery, Saint Lucia 2015-05-14 14:16:49 UTC 69.2 km
http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/us100028ye#general...

5.1 52km SW of San Juan del Sur, Nicaragua 2015-05-14 14:08:17 UTC 52.3 km

5.3 158km SW of Panguna, Papua New Guinea 2015-05-14 13:34:39 UTC 45.8 km
4.9 153km SW of Panguna, Papua New Guinea 2015-05-14 12:53:57 UTC 42.9 km
4.6 96km SSE of Ndoi Island, Fiji 2015-05-14 12:43:59 UTC 500.8 km
5.4 154km SW of Panguna, Papua New Guinea 2015-05-14 12:30:20 UTC 50.4 km

2.9 6km SW of Volcano, Hawaii 2015-05-14 10:58:01 UTC 2.7 km
2.7 4km WSW of Volcano, Hawaii 2015-05-14 10:57:40 UTC 0.0 km

4.9 131km SW of Kokopo, Papua New Guinea 2015-05-14 10:43:44 UTC 54.0 km

3.3 18km SE of Anthony, Kansas 2015-05-14 10:04:32 UTC 5.0 km
http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/us100028xh#general...

4.8 Izu Islands, Japan region 2015-05-14 08:38:56 UTC 27.9 km

4.9 140km SW of Panguna, Papua New Guinea 2015-05-14 08:03:20 UTC 56.4 km

5.0 193km WNW of Saumlaki, Indonesia 2015-05-14 01:00:40 UTC 125.0 km

4.9 Southern Mid-Atlantic Ridge 2015-05-13 22:48:49 UTC 10.0 km
http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/us100028vk#general...

5.0 27km SSE of Kodari, Nepal 2015-05-13 21:38:06 UTC 10.0 km
http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/us100028tz#general...

4.3 92km NNE of Minab, Iran 2015-05-13 20:27:17 UTC 10.0 km

5.2 East of the North Island of New Zealand 2015-05-13 19:18:08 UTC 10.0 km http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/us100028t2#general...

4.8 105km N of Isangel, Vanuatu 2015-05-13 18:37:17 UTC 209.5 km

4.5 146km SSW of Tres Picos, Mexico 2015-05-13 17:56:04 UTC 28.6 km

4.5 7km NNE of Bacon, Philippines 2015-05-13 17:00:13 UTC 55.0 km

http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/map/

Comment by jorge namour on May 13, 2015 at 12:15am: 2015-05-12 21:13:01.8
41min ago
38.99 N 141.98 E 60 6.8 NEAR EAST COAST OF HONSHU, JAPAN FELT
http://www.emsc-csem.org/Earthquake/earthquake.php?id=441689

Felt earthquake M5.2 in NEPAL-INDIA BORDER REGION 30 minutes ago EMSC
M 5.2 - NEPAL-INDIA BORDER REGION - 2015-05-12 21:25:11 UTC

2015-05-12 21:46:44.2
08min ago
19.45 N 155.33 W 10 2.9 ISLAND OF HAWAII, HAWAII
2015-05-12 20:46:51.2
1hr 08min ago
19.38 N 155.29 W 3 2.3 ISLAND OF HAWAII, HAWAII

M 3.2 - OKLAHOMA - 2015-05-12 21:31:02 UTC

2015-05-12 21:00:19.2
54min ago
12.68 N 125.46 E 10 4.9 SAMAR, PHILIPPINES

Magnitude 5.0
Region SOUTH OF AFRICA
Date time 2015-05-12 14:52:18.2 UTC
Location 52.37 S ; 27.87 E
Depth 10 km http://www.emsc-csem.org/Earthquake/earthquake.php?id=441657

M 4.6 - SUMBA REGION, INDONESIA - 2015-05-12 20:45:25 UTC

M 4.5 - NEPAL - 2015-05-12 20:22:15 UTC

M 4.2 - XIZANG-NEPAL BORDER REGION - 2015-05-12 19:38:09 UTC

M 4.4 - MINDANAO, PHILIPPINES - 2015-05-12 18:16:26 UTC

M 5.0 - NEW BRITAIN REGION, P.N.G. - 2015-05-12 18:03:58 UTC
M 4.7 - EASTERN NEW GUINEA REG., P.N.G. - 2015-05-12 17:03:58 UTC
M 4.7 - EASTERN NEW GUINEA REG., P.N.G. - 2015-05-12 17:03:58 UTC

M 4.4 - NEPAL - 2015-05-12 15:28:20 UTC

M 4.5 - ECUADOR - 2015-05-12 14:11:08 UTC

2015-05-12 12:28:22.4
9hr 32min ago
27.66 N 85.99 E 2 4.3 NEPAL
2015-05-12 11:58:09.1
10hr 02min ago
27.39 N 85.84 E 2 4.2 NEPAL

M 2.3 - ARKANSAS - 2015-05-12 11:45:21 UTC
http://www.emsc-csem.org/Earthquake/earthquake.php?id=441626

2015-05-12 08:21:10.5 27.78 N 86.20 E 10 5.3 NEPAL
2015-05-12 07:36:53.7 27.65 N 86.31 E 10 6.2 NEPAL
http://www.emsc-csem.org/Earthquake/earthquake.php?id=441559
2015-05-12 07:34:24.2 27.94 N 86.36 E 10 5.5 NEPAL
2015-05-12 07:17:23.0 27.99 N 86.31 E 20 5.6 NEPAL

2015-05-12 07:37:02.0 24.50 S 67.25 W 167 4.5 SALTA, ARGENTINA

2015-05-12 07:22:04.8 7.34 S 129.27 E 149 5.4 KEPULAUAN BABAR, INDONESIA
2015-05-12 06:27:06.4 9.94 S 108.74 E 30 5.1 SOUTH OF JAVA, INDONESIA

2015-05-12 02:31:24.8 42.06 N 142.64 E 70 4.6 HOKKAIDO, JAPAN REGION

M 3.5 - NORTHERN ITALY - 2015-05-12 02:02:49 UTC
http://www.emsc-csem.org/Earthquake/earthquake.php?id=441516

2015-05-12 01:52:19.0 19.38 N 155.28 W 2 2.4 ISLAND OF HAWAII, HAWAII
2015-05-12 01:40:41.3 19.38 N 155.28 W 3 3.1 ISLAND OF HAWAII, HAWAII

2015-05-12 00:36:11.1 33.30 S 70.45 W 106 4.0 REGION METROPOLITANA, CHILE

2015-05-11 23:40:52.1 39.97 N 33.30 E 19 4.0 CENTRAL TURKEY FELT
http://www.emsc-csem.org/Earthquake/earthquake.php?id=441504

Magnitude 5.3
Region MID-INDIAN RIDGE
Date time 2015-05-11 17:42:07.2 UTC
Location 7.81 S ; 67.78 E
Depth 40 km http://www.emsc-csem.org/Earthquake/earthquake.php?id=441464

Magnitude 4.5
Region CENTRAL PERU
Date time 2015-05-11 16:29:08.8 UTC
Location 8.10 S ; 76.11 W
Depth 109 km

Magnitude 5.0
Region HALMAHERA, INDONESIA
Date time 2015-05-11 15:45:07.0 UTC
Location 1.53 N ; 127.43 E
Depth 143 km

Magnitude mb 5.5
Region BOUGAINVILLE REGION, P.N.G.
Date time 2015-05-11 11:51:21.3 UTC
Location 7.10 S ; 154.50 E
Depth 40 km

Magnitude M 5.0
Region CENTRAL ALASKA
Date time 2015-05-11 09:25:36.9 UTC
Location 63.04 N ; 148.55 W
Depth 10 km http://www.emsc-csem.org/Earthquake/earthquake.php?id=441401

Magnitude ML 5.0
Region TAIWAN
Date time 2015-05-11 08:38:21.4 UTC
Location 24.59 N ; 120.42 E
Depth 16 km

Magnitude M 4.7
Region IONIAN SEA
Date time 2015-05-11 08:26:29.5 UTC
Location 37.38 N ; 16.81 E
Depth 10 km

Magnitude M 5.1
Region KURIL ISLANDS
Date time 2015-05-11 07:35:45.7 UTC
Location 47.34 N ; 153.98 E
Depth 20 km

Magnitude M 5.0
Region FIJI REGION
Date time 2015-05-11 03:30:15.8 UTC
Location 20.56 S ; 178.68 W
Depth 614 km

http://www.emsc-csem.org/Earthquake/?view=1

Comment by Starr DiGiacomo on May 12, 2015 at 10:55pm: http://phys.org/news/2015-05-rumbling-ocean-trenches-japan-mega.html

Rumbling from ocean trenches could be sign that Japan faces mega earthquake

May 11, 2015 by Luca De Siena, The Conversation

Researchers in Japan have for the first time detected and traced shallow tremors under the ocean that could be a sign that the country is heading towards a huge earthquake. But the technique itself may one day help us predict exactly when such an event would take place, which could save thousands of lives.

Japan still has the devastating 9.0 magnitude, megathrust earthquake in Tohoku in fresh memory, which produced a powerful tsunami and killed nearly 16,000 people when it hit in 2011. It is therefore no wonder that Japanese researchers are the first to detect weak signals of seismic activity.

Japan already has the most powerful seismic network in the world – and research institutions in the country are constantly growing it. Ocean Bottom Seismometers, which measure motion under the sea, have greatly facilitated these efforts by listening to the "rumbling" that is created when two tectonic plates meet. Such instruments have helped detect low-energy, "slow earthquakes" along oceanic trenches that we otherwise wouldn't notice.

These earthquakes, which we know are produced deep under the famous San Andreas fault, preceded the Tohoku Earthquake. They occur much more slowly than standard earthquakes. If they are associated with the underground movement of magma and hot water but they are not related to volcanoes, they are knows as "non-volcanic tremors". By comparison, big earthquakes are caused by the rupture of faults and give rise to short-lived, high-energy seismic waves

Slow-slip earthquakes and tremors don't cause any damage on their own. However, if they coincide with very-low-frequency earthquakes they can. These are another type of slow earthquake that is caused by processes deeper down under ground than tremors and usually indicate fault motions near the dangerous area where the tectonic plates meet. If all these types of slow earthquakes take place, along the faulted zone at different depths, they could be a sign we are near to a mega-thrust earthquake.

The researchers – who investigated the Kyushu Palau Ridge, southeast of Kyushu – have, for the first time, been able to detect and map shallow tremors in correlation with the other kinds of slow earthquakes. Even more importantly, they have showed what direction all these events are moving in. This kind of detailed knowledge of seismic activity is considered one of the most reliable ways of predicting big earthquakes.

Warning signs

What the study found out is that the waves produced by all these quiet earthquakes consistently migrated north along the ridge. The movement abruptly ended at the limit of the trench, where it was blocked by a so-called locked zone – where friction keeps the two plates together so they can't slip – where previous mega-thrust events have occurred. After this, the waves travelled east.

This does not look promising, as to avoid a mega-thrust earthquake you'd prefer the slow quakes to stay in a locked zone, where the stress caused by them can be released and the movement can fizzle out. In this case, however, they are probably causing the coupling between the two plates to weaken, which is expected before a mega-thrust event.

The study, which was published in Science on May 7, shows that shallow slow earthquakes may therefore become a reliable way of detecting when and where the next mega earthquake will strike. This can be done by deploying ocean bottom seismometers along different trenches. In that way, we could detect the pattern of earthquakes in various places so that they would become an exact marker of when any mega-thrust earthquake strikes under the ocean, often causing a tsunami as well.

The next such earthquake could strike the coast of Kyushu, a region well known for its dangerous volcanoes. Let's hope that, by then, we have come far enough to prevent the same devastation as we saw in 2011. No place is better than Japan to drive such technological progress.

Explore further: Scientists begin monitoring tremors on San Andreas Fault