The iron in Earth’s inner core weakens dramatically before it melts, explaining the unusual properties that exist in the moon-sized solid center of our planet that have, up until now, been difficult to understand.
Source: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/10/131010142750.htm
A tiny chip used in smart phones to adjust the orientation of the screen could serve to create a real-time urban seismic network, easily increasing the amount of strong motion data collected during a large earthquake.
Source: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/09/130929202752.htm
Geologists have shown how deep earthquakes can be simulated in the laboratory. The experiments were performed using a new type of apparatus that uses synchrotron X-rays.
Source: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/09/130919142200.htm
A magnitude 8.3 earthquake that struck deep beneath the Sea of Okhotsk on May 24, 2013, has left seismologists struggling to explain how it happened. At a depth of about 609 kilometers, the intense pressure on the fault should inhibit the kind of rupture that took place.
Source: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/09/130919142152.htm
The stage is now set for superconductivity to branch out and meet some of the biggest challenges facing humanity today. A new article explains how superconducting technologies can move out of laboratories and hospitals and address wider issues such as water purification, earthquake monitoring and the reduction of greenhouse gases.
Source: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/09/130916091144.htm
Scientists seeking to understand the forces at work beneath the surface of the Earth have used seismic waves to detect previously unknown “fingers” of heat, some of them thousands of miles long, in Earth’s upper mantle. Their discovery helps explain the “hotspot volcanoes” that give birth to island chains such as Hawai’i and Tahiti.
Source: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/09/130905142815.htm
In 1909, an Iranian telegraph operator living in the remote desert town of Kerman noticed an unusual movement of the magnetic needle of his telegraph instrument. While other telegraph operators during the late 1800s and early 1900s noticed the phenomenon, the Iranian telegraph operator proposed an earthquake early warning system.
Source: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/09/130903151849.htm
An early warning system against tsunamis has been developed and tailored for the need of the Mediterranean, but preparedness on the ground is paramount to ensuring peoples’ safety.
Source: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/08/130829093041.htm
Scientists have developed a 3-D model of the Earth’s mantle and crust called SALSA3D, or Sandia-Los Alamos 3D. The purpose of this model is more accurately locate all types of explosions.
Source: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/08/130827134756.htm
Earthquake damage to buildings is mainly due to the existing shear waves which transfer their energy during an earthquake to the houses. These shear waves are significantly influenced by the underground and the topography of the surrounding area. Detailed knowledge of the landform and the near-surface underground structure is, therefore, an important prerequisite for a local seismic hazard assessment and for the evaluation of the ground-effect, which can strongly modify and increase local ground motion.
Source: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/08/130827112113.htm