#Seismic Activity Japan

[touchaheartnews]

Japan Earthquake and Tsunami Alert Issued After Kyushu Quake

The Japan Meteorological Agency issued its first-ever warning about a high risk of a massive earthquake along the Pacific coast after a quake hit the southern island of Kyushu on Thursday. This quake triggered a tsunami warning, but no deaths or major damage have been reported. The agency warned that the risk of a huge earthquake in the Nankai Trough area is higher than usual. However, this does…

[hillbilly---man]

Getting the authentic Japan experience on our last night here (feeling our beds shake from an earthquake)

[trendynewsnow]

The Uncertain Future of Nuclear Power in Japan

A decade after one of the most catastrophic atomic-energy disasters in modern history, Japan appears to be inching closer to the revival of its nuclear power sector. By around 2022, a notable shift in public sentiment emerged, with a majority expressing support for the restart of the nation’s nuclear facilities. Most of these plants have remained offline since the devastating earthquake and…

[plaguedocboi]

Another fun fact about the Devil’s Hole: we still don’t know how deep it is, but it is so deep that distant seismic activity can cause miniature tsunamis in it. There was a 7.6 earthquake in Mexico that made four-foot-high waves on the surface, and earthquakes as far away as Japan have caused noticeable waves

[warau-okami]

Remembering March 11, 2011

On March 11, 2011, a magnitude (Mw) 9.1 earthquake struck off the northeast coast of Honshu on the Japan Trench. A tsunami that was generated by the earthquake arrived at the coast within 30 minutes, overtopping seawalls and disabling three nuclear reactors within days. The 2011 Tohoku Earthquake and Tsunami event, often referred to as the Great East Japan earthquake and tsunami, resulted in over 18,000 dead, including several thousand victims who were never recovered.

The deadly earthquake was the largest magnitude ever recorded in Japan and the third-largest in the world since 1900.

How It Happened

The 2011 event resulted from thrust faulting on the subduction zone plate boundary between the Pacific and North America plates, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.

This region has a high rate of seismic activity, with the potential to generate tsunamis. Past earthquakes that generated tsunamis in the region have included the deadly events of 1611, 1896, and 1933.

The March 11, 2011 earthquake generated a tsunami with a maximum wave height of almost 40 meters (130 feet) in the Iwate Prefecture. Researchers also determined that a 2,000-kilometer (1,242-mile) stretch of Japan’s Pacific coast was impacted by the tsunami.

Following the earthquake, a tsunami disabled the power supply and cooling of three Fukushima Daiichi reactors, causing a significant nuclear accident. All three nuclear cores largely melted in the first three days.

As of December 2020, the Japan National Police Agency reported 15,899 deaths, 2,527 missing and presumed deaths, and 6,157 injuries for the Great East Japan event.

High Costs

In Japan, the event resulted in the total destruction of more than 123,000 houses and damage to almost a million more. Ninety-eight percent of the damage was attributed to the tsunami. The costs resulting from the earthquake and tsunami in Japan alone were estimated at $220 billion USD. The damage makes the 2011 Great East Japan earthquake and tsunami the most expensive natural disaster in history.

Although the majority of the tsunami’s impact was in Japan, the event was truly global. The tsunami was observed at coastal sea level gauges in over 25 Pacific Rim countries, in Antarctica, and on the west coast of the Atlantic Ocean in Brazil.

The tsunami caused $31 million USD damage in Hawaii and $100 million USD in damages and recovery to marine facilities in California. Additionally, damage was reported in French Polynesia, Galapagos Islands, Peru, and Chile.

Fortunately, the loss of life outside of Japan was minimal (one death in Indonesia and one death in California) due to the Pacific Tsunami Warning System and its connections to national-level warning and evacuation systems.

Read more

[pix4japan]

Scenic Heights: Koriga-Ike Pond and Geological Marvels on the Izu Skyline

Location: Izu Skyline, Shizuoka, Japan Timestamps: 15:33 on February 14, 2024

Pentax K-1 II + DFA 28-105mm F3.5-5.6 + CP 88 mm ISO 100 for 1/25 sec. at ƒ/10

Koriga-Ike Pond reveals its tranquil beauty exclusively to travelers on the Izu Skyline, situated approximately 120 km southwest of central Tokyo.

Perched at an altitude of 680 m, the Izu Skyline Kurotake Parking Lot offers visitors an uninterrupted view of the pond.

Once a vital source of cut ice for Atami resort hotels, the pond transformed into a scenic haven for tourists traveling by car after the nearby ropeway closed in 1970.

This pond, and six others, owe their existence to seismic activity spanning thousands of years along the Tanna Fault, which also played a more recent role in the 1930 North Izu Earthquake with a magnitude of 7.0.

In the full write-up (2-min. read), I delve a little deeper into the "ice pond," the short life of the abandoned ropeway that stands nearby the pond, and go into the geological impact of the Tanna Fault. I’ve also posted Google Maps links for the pond and the parking, and list sources for further reading (https://www.pix4japan.com/blog/20240214-korigaike).

[warningsine]

https://www.reuters.com/world/japan/magnitude-74-earthquake-strikes-japan-tsunami-warning-issued-2024-01-01/

TOKYO, Jan 1 (Reuters) - A powerful earthquake struck central Japan on Monday, killing at least one person, destroying buildings, knocking out power to tens of thousands of homes and prompting residents in some coastal areas to flee to higher ground.

The quake with a preliminary magnitude of 7.6 triggered waves of about 1 metre along Japan's west coast and neighbouring South Korea, with authorities saying larger waves could follow.

The Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) issued tsunami warnings for the prefectures of Ishikawa, Niigata and Toyama.

A major tsunami warning - the first since the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami that struck northeastern Japan - was issued for Ishikawa but was later downgraded and eventually cut to an advisory, meaning waves up to 1 metre (3 foot) high could be expected.

It was the strongest quake in the region in more than four decades, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.

Russia and North Korea also issued tsunami warnings for some areas.

Houses were destroyed, fires broke out and army personnel were dispatched to help with rescue operations, government spokesperson Yoshimasa Hayashi told reporters.

One elderly man was pronounced dead after a building collapse in Shika Town in Ishikawa, broadcaster NTV reported citing local police.

"The snow from the electric wire (came) down, and also from the roof it fell down and all the cars are shaking, and so everybody was panicked," Jonny Wu, a Taiwanese tourist visiting nearby Nagano prefecture for a skiing holiday, told Reuters.

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida told reporters he had instructed search and rescue teams to do everything possible to save lives, even though access to quake-hit areas was difficult due to blocked roads.

More strong quakes in the area, where seismic activity has been simmering for more than three years, could occur over coming days, JMA official Toshihiro Shimoyama said.

The government said that as of Monday night it had ordered more than 97,000 people in nine prefectures on the western coast of Japan's main island Honshu to evacuate.

In comments to the press shortly after the quake struck, Kishida also warned residents to prepare for more disasters.

"I urge people in areas where tsunamis are expected to evacuate as soon as possible," Kishida said.

The Imperial Household Agency said that following the disaster it would cancel Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako's slated New Year appearance on Tuesday.A magnitude 7.6 earthquake struck in Ishikawa prefecture in central Japan on Monday

'TSUNAMI! EVACUATE!'

Following the quake, a bright yellow message reading "Tsunami! Evacuate!" flashed across television screens advising residents in specific areas of the coast to immediately evacuate.

Local media footage showed a building collapsing in a plume of dust in the city of Suzu and a huge crack in a road in Wajima where panicked-looking parents clutched their children.

There were reports of at least 30 collapsed buildings in Wajima, a town of around 30,000 known for its lacquerware, and fire engulfed several buildings.

The quake also jolted buildings in the capital Tokyo, some 500 km from Wajima on the opposite coast.

Almost 32,000 households were still without power in Ishikawa prefecture late on Monday, according to utilities provider Hokuriku Electric Power (9505.T), with temperatures set to drop to near freezing overnight in some areas.

Tohoku Electric Power (9506.T) said 700 households remained without power in neighbouring Niigata prefecture.

Telecoms operators also reported phone and internet outages in some areas.

Forty train lines and two high-speed rail services to the quake-hit area halted operations, while six expressways were closed and one of Ishikawa's airports was forced to shut due to a crack in the runway, transport authorities said.

Japanese airline ANA (9202.T) turned back planes headed to airports in Toyama and Ishikawa, while Japan Airlines (9201.T) cancelled most of its services to the Niigata and Ishikawa regions.

NUCLEAR PLANTS

The quake comes at a sensitive time for Japan's nuclear industry, which has faced fierce opposition from some locals since a 2011 earthquake and tsunami triggered nuclear meltdowns in Fukushima. Nearly 20,000 people were killed and whole towns devastated in the disaster.

Japan last week lifted an operational ban imposed on the world's biggest nuclear plant, Kashiwazaki-Kariwa, which has been offline since the 2011 tsunami.

Japan’s Nuclear Regulation Authority said no irregularities have been confirmed at nuclear power plants along the Sea of Japan, including five active reactors at Kansai Electric Power’s (9503.T) Ohi and Takahama plants in Fukui Prefecture.

Hokuriku's Shika plant in Ishikawa, the closest nuclear power station to the epicentre, had already halted its two reactors before the quake for regular inspections and saw no impact from the quake, the agency said.

Monday's quake struck during the Jan. 1 public holiday when millions of Japanese traditionally visit temples to mark the new year.

In Kanazawa, a popular tourist destination in Ishikawa, images showed the remnants of a shattered stone gate strewn at the entrance of a shrine as anxious worshippers looked on.

Kanazawa resident Ayako Daikai said she had evacuated to a nearby elementary school with her husband and two children soon after the earthquake hit. Classrooms, stairwells, hallways and the gymnasium were all packed with evacuees, she said.

"We haven't decided when to return home yet," she told Reuters when contacted by telephone.

[tollingreminiscentbells]

On a topic that isn't me alienating a segment of the Tomarrymort fandom, if you were around for my earlier misadventures with Kenshokai you may be pleased to hear that it's been a few weeks since they last showed up at my door. So I think it's safe to say that I have successfully removed myself from the local cult recruitment circuit.

They tried three times in total before finally giving up. I think they knew I was home but ignoring them and took the hint.

And if you've missed out on this important piece of information: if you're ever in Japan and some people approach you with a big pamphlet with a picture of Mt. Fuji on it? That's Kenshokai. They're a Buddhist, ultranationalist doomsday cult and you should disengage. They're probably having a field day right now with the Ishikawa quake, claiming that seismic activity would calm down if only Japanese people would be more Buddhist. That's what they did after the Tohoku quake in 2011, so I would be shocked if it weren't in their 2024 recruitment pitch.

[beardedmrbean]

A woman in her 80s has been pulled from the rubble of her collapsed house in Japan, 72 hours after the New Year's Day earthquake.

Public broadcaster NHK showed video of the woman being lifted out of her home in the town of Wajima.

Rescuers are racing against time in their search for survivors, as a critical three-day window has now shut.

At least 82 people were killed when a 7.6 magnitude earthquake hit the remote Noto peninsula on Monday.

Many people are thought to be trapped under their collapsed homes - mostly in the towns of Suzu and Wajima.

The woman in her 80s had reportedly been trapped on the ground floor of her house since the earthquake hit.

After 72 hours, the chances of finding people alive drops substantially. That window has now closed as the earthquake hit at 16:10 local time (07:10 GMT) on Monday.

Tens of thousands of residents are still without power and water, while hundreds remain isolated from help due to landslides and blocked roads.

Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said earlier on Thursday that 150 people had been rescued so far, and that rescuers would continue with their full-scale efforts to save as many as possible.

"This is a very difficult situation. But from the viewpoint of protecting lives, I ask that you make every effort to save and rescue as many lives as possible by this evening, when the critical 72 hours of the disaster will have passed," he said.

The tremor on Monday, which was followed by a series of aftershocks, injured at least 330 people, according to AFP news agency.

More than 30,000 people in the quake-affected areas are still in shelters, with some towns lacking water, electricity and internet connection.

Meanwhile stories of dramatic rescues have been going viral online. A video posted by Peace Winds Japan, a local NGO that helped with the rescue, show several rescuers ploughing through layers of collapsed furniture to rescue a woman trapped under her home. They then wrapped a thick blanket around her.

The BBC saw extensive destruction on a visit to Wajima on Wednesday, where some homes and vehicles were crushed under crumbling concrete. . Many of the town's old, traditional wooden homes had collapsed.

Japan introduced new regulations to protect buildings from earthquakes in 1981, but many of the wooden homes were built before these were introduced.

Some of the Wajima's residents, many of them elderly, had not carried out the work to upgrade their homes. Data from 2018 showed that more than half the buildings in the town were not in line with the new standards.

With a population of about 23,000, Wajima now resembles a ghost town as most heeded the early warnings to evacuate, when tsunamis were forecast.

But it has still recorded the largest death toll, with 48 confirmed deaths - more than half of the total number of casualties. That number is expected to rise, as some areas surrounding the town are still cut off by ruptured roads and landslides, with help unable to reach people.

Shigeru Sakaguchi, mayor of Wajima, said food and other aid supplies had reached only 2,000 out of 10,000 evacuees from the town so far.

According to the mayor of Suzu, a town with a population of about 13,000, almost none of its houses are standing. Around 90% are completely or almost completely collapsed, Masuhiro Izumiya said.

A small tsunami struck the town one minute after the major quake.

Japan is one of the most seismically active countries in the world, and activity has been increasing around Noto since the end of 2020. There have been more than 500 small and medium earthquakes here over the past three years.

[azvolrien]

Rock Facts: Fun With Faults

I actually had this post in mind a couple of weeks ago, but then I got up on the 9th and decided that it... might be considered in poor taste that particular weekend. So I gave it a little while.

So, when you think of seismically-active regions, you generally think of places like California and Japan; Scotland is not very high on the list of places that spring immediately to mind. In fact, we get quite a lot of earth tremors every year! It's just that fortunately most of them are small enough that nobody who isn't staring intently at a seismograph at the time even notices, and most of the bigger ones are on the scale of 'huh, that must've been a big truck that just went past'.

There are three main fault zones (and a lot of smaller ones) running through Scotland to cause these little quakes, and interestingly you can see them pretty clearly on the satellite picture above.

The first I'll highlight is the Great Glen Fault.

It's a strike-slip fault (goes sideways) like San Andreas in California, though thankfully much less active, and runs from the Isle of Mull in the southwest to the Moray Firth in the northeast. The fault actually extends further in either direction, down through the north of Ireland and up towards Shetland, but those regions have different names so we won't worry about them not.

The fault leaves a particular line of weakness in the bedrock along the Great Glen that's been further scoured out by glacial activity; this is why Loch Ness is as deep as it is. It's not the biggest loch by surface area (that would be Loch Lomond) and it's not the deepest (Loch Morar), but the two combined make it easily the biggest by volume. As in, 'contains more freshwater than all the lakes in England and Wales combined'.

The Kessock Bridge, which you'll cross to drive north out of Inverness, is engineered to account for movement on the fault.

Secondly, the Southern Uplands Fault.

This one cuts across from South Ayrshire in the southeast to Dunbar in East Lothian. I actually don't know very much about it, but it's the divider between the gentle lowlands of the Central Belt and the higher ground of the Southern Uplands. Nice part of the country, actually.

Finally, the one I find most interesting: the Highland Boundary Fault.

Look back up at the unedited sat pic; you can see that it makes a very, very clear line from the Isle of Arran in the southwest, up across the southern end of Loch Lomond and through Perthshire, until it hits the coast again at Stonehaven just south of Aberdeen. The political and cultural dividers between the Highlands and the Lowlands are more complicated and outwith the scope of this post, but geologically? This is the boundary.

On the way, the fault passes through the small town of Comrie to the west of Perth, where it shoogles enough to make Comrie the most seismically-active place in Britain and give it the nickname of the Shaky Toun. It's also the site of the first modern seismometer, which was kept in the small building known as Earthquake House. Earthquake House is still a seismic observatory, though the equipment is a bit better these days.

[thepastisalreadywritten]

Taipei, Taiwan CNN — Rescuers in Taiwan scrambled to free dozens of people trapped in highway tunnels after the island was struck by its strongest earthquake in 25 years Wednesday, killing at least nine and injuring more than 900 others.

The powerful 7.4 magnitude tremor shook the island’s east coast, hitting at 7:58 a.m. local time, 18 kilometers (11 miles) south of Hualien city and at a depth of 34.8 kilometers (21 miles), according to the US Geological Survey.

It was followed by several strong aftershocks with tremors felt across the island, including by CNN staff in the capital Taipei.

Taiwan’s National Fire Agency (NFA) said in an update on Wednesday that the death toll had risen to nine, while 934 people have been injured.

The NFA did not indicate the severity of the injuries.

Meanwhile, 75 people stranded in various tunnels in Hualien County have been rescued by emergency responders.

As of 7 a.m. Eastern Time, 137 people remain trapped.

Among those trapped were 50 employees of the Silk’s Place Hotel Taroko, who were traveling in four minibuses.

Authorities have been unable to reach them by phone and have listed them as trapped for the time being.

Two German citizens that were caught up earlier in a tunnel in Hualien County have been rescued, the NFA added.

All the deaths were in Hualien County, among them three hikers killed by falling rocks in the tourist hotspot Taroko Gorge, the NFA said.

Falling rocks also killed a truck driver in front of a tunnel on the east coast’s Suhua Highway, it added.

Reports of extensive damage have also emerged, with collapsed buildings in Hualien County, thousands of homes left without power and a major highway closed due to landslides and rockfalls, according to Taiwanese officials.

Most of those trapped are in two road tunnels in northern Hualien County, the NFA said.

Two German nationals are stranded in a third tunnel in the county, it said.

The 400-meter Jinwen Tunnel, where 60 people are trapped, is one of more than a dozen that thread the Suhua Highway, a scenic but treacherous and narrow road that runs for 118 kilometers (73 miles) along the east coast.

Meanwhile, rescuers were en route to 12 people, including two Canadians, stuck on a trail in Taroko Gorge.

Taiwan’s Central Weather Administration spokesperson warned that powerful aftershocks as high as magnitude 7 are expected to occur until the end of the week.

“There was really strong shaking… We quickly turned off the gas and electricity and opened the door. It was really strong. It felt like the house would fall down,” Taipei resident Chang Yu-lin said on CNN affiliate Taiwan Plus.

Chen Nien-tzu, also in Taipei, said, “It was really wild.”

“It’s been a long time since we’ve had an earthquake so it felt really scary,” she said on Taiwan Plus.

The quake prompted initial tsunami warnings in Taiwan, southern Japan and the Philippines, with waves less than half a meter observed along some coasts and prompting airlines to suspend flights. All tsunami warnings were later lifted.

In Taiwan, military personnel were dispatched to help with disaster relief and schools and workplaces suspended operations as aftershocks hit the island, according to the Defense Ministry.

Taiwan’s outgoing President Tsai Ing-wen said Wednesday she had ordered her administration to “immediately” get “on top of the situation and understand local impacts as soon as possible.”

Tsai also told the administration to “provide necessary assistance and work together with local governments to minimize the impact of the disaster.”

Taiwan, a self-ruled island east of mainland China, is home to about 23 million people, most of whom live in the industrialized cities of its west coast, including the capital.

The island is regularly rocked by earthquakes due to its location on the Pacific Ring of Fire, which runs around the edge of the Pacific Ocean and causes massive seismic and volcanic activity from Indonesia to Chile.

Wednesday’s quake is the strongest to hit Taiwan since 1999, according to the Central Weather Administration.

That year, a 7.7 magnitude quake hit south of Taipei, killing 2,400 people and injuring 10,000 others.

Hualien County, parts of which are mountainous and remote, is home to about 300,000 people on the island’s sparsely populated east coast.

A magnitude 6.2 quake hit near the area in 2018, killing at least 17 people and injuring more than 300 others.

Collapsed buildings, highway damaged

The full extent of the damage is still being assessed, with road and rail closures curtailing access to the quake’s epicenter in Hualien County.

More than 100 buildings were damaged across the island, the National Fire Agency said, with about half of those in Hualien County.

Search and rescue operations were ongoing Wednesday afternoon at the nine-story Uranus Building that had partially collapsed, trapping residents, Hualien County Magistrate Hsu Chen-wei told reporters.

So far, 22 people had been rescued from the building, according to the NFA.

More than 91,000 households are without electricity, according to Taiwan’s Central Emergency Command Center.

The government-operated Taipower Company is working to restore power, it added.

Footage posted on social media showed several collapsed buildings in Hualien and residents helping trapped people escape through the window of a damaged apartment complex.

The quake struck during the morning rush hour, with videos showing vehicles bouncing on a vigorously shaking highway, an overpass swaying in Taipei, and commuters struggling to stand inside a juddering Taipei metro train.

Meanwhile, video broadcast by CNN affiliate TVBS showed cellphone and security camera footage of the moment tremors struck homes and businesses across the island.

One clip showed power lines swaying violently above a street and another saw chandeliers shaking in a restaurant.

Large boulders could be seen strewn across the eastern Suhua Highway, with several tunnels broken — including one split in half, TVBS footage showed.

CNN affiliate SET News shows the front of a car smashed by fallen rocks.

Transport authorities recorded at least nine rockfalls and landslides on the highway, which has been closed to traffic.

Another highway connecting the west coast with eastern Taiwan was also damaged by falling rocks, with at least 12 cars hit and nine people injured, TVBS reported.

Tsunami waves

The quake sparked tsunami warnings across the region as authorities ordered evacuations.

In Taiwan’s Chenggong, about 100 kilometers (62 miles) south of the quake’s epicenter, waves reached almost half a meter.

The Central Weather Administration advised residents to evacuate to higher ground.

The Japan Meteorological Agency also issued a tsunami alert for the southern Miyakojima and Okinawa islands, warning of waves up to 3 meters (nearly 10 feet) high.

A 30-centimeter (nearly 1 foot) wave impacted Okinawa, the first tsunami observed there in 26 years, the agency said.

Several hours later, the US Tsunami Warning Center said the tsunami threat had “largely passed” but people in coastal areas should remain alert.

All flights from Okinawa and Kagoshima prefectures were suspended following the tsunami warnings in the area, Japan Airlines said.

Okinawa’s Naha airport resumed flights after the tsunami warning was downgraded to an advisory, airport spokesperson Hideaki Tsurudo told CNN.

[lovedrunkheadcanons]

Chapter Contents

(Arranged Marriage Fic) Read on Ao3

Rated M

The evil that took place inside the New National Theater on July 8, 2014, would go down as possibly the most egregious act of domestic terrorism in modern Tokyo since the subway sarin attacks of 1995, where followers of the Aum Shinrikyo movement dispersed sarin bombs into five Tokyo Metro stations, killing 13 people and injuring thousands. By contrast, the theater’s death toll would be 50 times that amount, and when the night was through, a reported 663 people would be dead, 80 missing, and more than 1,000 left severely injured. According to the Japan Meteorological Agency, the seismic activity of the devastation could be felt from Shibuya all the way to the outer east wards of Edogawa and Tokyo Bay. Nearly ⅔ of the theater would be reduced to a crumbling ash heap, including the left side of Opera City Tower, and 158 neighboring buildings would have their windows completely shattered, destroying 74 vehicles, and causing an estimated ¥83 billion worth of damage. After conducting a full investigation, the NPA (National Police Agency) would accuse the Aum Shinrikyo movement of once again being responsible for the attack, stating the doomsday cult had detonated a bomb containing up to 3,000 tons of TNT, and were now evading police. Tokyo would be placed on lockdown until the suspects were apprehended. The whole city would undergo a state of mourning. 

Except that wasn't how it happened.

This would be a lie fabricated by the Japanese government to elude the public from knowing the truth. The truth that the attack was not of human making. That despite the whole of jujutsu society gathered in attendance, and the strongest protective spells safeguarding the perimeter, a special-grade curse managed to bypass security and seal the entire theater within its Domain, thus obliterating most of the building and killing the majority of guests and staff inside, resulting in a bloodsport of devastation and carnage.

Hannah didn’t know how much time had elapsed since the ceiling caved. She thought to have heard alarm bells blaring someplace but perhaps that was more in part to the faint ringing in her ears. The acrid smell of smoke and debris still lingered, though not as strong as before. She felt no pain. Had no trouble breathing. Actually, as strange as it seemed, she felt she was lying peacefully underneath a shaded canopy. Could this be Heaven, she thought. Interesting. For having been quashed to death by a collapsed concrete ceiling, Heaven felt surprisingly more…embracing than she imagined. Smelled nice. Warm. Had a heartbeat even.

“You okay?”

Hannah slowly peeled her eyes open to find her nose buried in Satoru’s shirt. He had used his Infinity as a buffer, shielding them from the impending rubble. She looked around, trying to collect her bearings, dazed from the noise and confusion. She had taken no serious hurt. Nothing felt broken or injured, no missing limbs. All indications she was very much alive and had not gone to Heaven. Blinking rapidly, she sat up in her husband’s arms, expecting to see a war zone: burning fire, ambulance lights, search and rescue parties frantically scouring for dead bodies beneath the wreckage. Instead she saw darkness. And like an open reservoir, the immediate past came flooding back to her in disorienting waves: People are dead. She took a sharp inhale, placing a convulsive hand to her mouth.

“Oh, God,” she whispered in a shaky, distracted voice she hardly recognized as her own. “It’s my fault.”

“What?” Satoru said, looking at her like she had gone looney.

“It’s my fault.”

“What’s your fault?”

“Everything!” she shrilled, almost hysterical. “T-The green lights, the demons I didn’t know weren’t actually demons, the curse, everything. The Sight showed me everything, but I was confused, I failed to make the connection, and now all those people are…those people are…”

She covered her face in her hands. Satoru had heard her cry before - at night from the other side of her bedroom - but this was different. This was how she cried, in earnest, when she was wide awake. She barely made a sound. It was eerily quiet, a long, drawn out pause with every quivering inhale as the sobs racked her body. She had taught herself to cry this way, he thought. Silent, so no one would know. It made his own heart break, and with tenderness he didn’t know he was capable of, he pulled her close to him.

“Shhh, it’s alright,” he soothed, resting his chin on her crown. “I’ve got you. Don’t cry.”

“I should have said something,” she blubbered into his shoulder. “They’re dead because of me.”

Satoru forced her to look at him then, cupping the back of her head and tilting it upwards. Their eyes met, face to face.

“I don’t want to hear those words come out of your mouth. Do you understand? Not ever.”

“But it’s true,” she sobbed. “I could’ve prevented this. I could’ve stopped it from happening. That’s the whole reason I’m here. If I can’t predict the future, what good am I?”

“That doesn’t make you responsible for their deaths, Hannah.” Satoru was the most serious he had ever been with her. “The curse did this, not you. It’s not your fault.” He emphasized each word with a mild shake of her shoulders. “You are not to blame.”

Hannah felt her husband's embrace tighten around her, face flush against his chest so she could hear the steady rhythm of his heart, drowning out any excess noise around them. His unique scent of coffee and vetiver was comforting. And like an infant being gently rocked to sleep, she felt her pulse abade and her breathing even out almost immediately. He kept rumbling soporific words in her hair, “You’re alright. Don’t cry,” as he swayed gently back and forth. Hannah closed her eyes and said nothing. The tears stopped flowing. They remained like that for a few minutes before Satoru stopped swaying and fished out his phone. She heard him repeatedly fiddle with the screen, pressing and tapping, yet no matter how many times he pushed the power button, the device wouldn’t turn on. He eventually gave up and placed the phone back in his pocket.

“Welp, should I tell you the good news first, or the bad news?”

Hannah looked up, sniffling. “There’s good news?”

“Okay, good news it is,” he chuckled, rubbing her arms up and down. “The good news is we’re not trapped inside an actual Domain. This Expansion is incomplete.”

She blinked. “Really? How do you know?”

Satoru adjusted his hold on her. “Domain Expansion is a cursed technique. Activating it requires unprecedented amounts of cursed energy. A normal person would die from the exposure, but you’re not dead, so <em>yay</em>. No real Domain.”

“Alright,” Hannah said, biting her lip. “And the bad news?”

“The bad news is while this Domain may be incomplete, you can’t just find the nearest exit and walk out. In theory you could try using jujutsu to break through. Only problem is it wouldn’t eliminate the source and leave you vulnerable to attack. Plus, if there are any survivors down here, recklessly breaking the Domain might unintentionally kill them.”

Her stomach dropped. “So, what you’re saying is we’ll have to go out there and exorcize…the…” Hannah couldn’t bring herself to finish. She didn’t want to. Here they were, imprisoned like two flies in a bottle, and their only means of ensuring everyone made it out alive was to eradicate the curse before it eradicated them.

“Yup.” Satoru dipped his chin. “Sounds about right.”

Hannah felt her resolve collapse like the ceiling. She whimpered and began shimming away, but Satoru wouldn’t let go.

“Hey, hey, hey.” He pulled her in for another hug. “Everything is gonna be fine, Hannah. Exorcizing the curse will be a piece of cake.”

“For you, maybe,” she said. “In case it slipped your notice, I’m not a sorcerer.”

“Exactly,” Satoru quibbed. “You have the easiest part. All you have to do is sit back and enjoy the show.”

“The show?” She shot him an incredulous look. “Satoru, that thing just killed hundreds of innocent people and is now roaming around the place, looking to eat us.”

All right. She had a point.

“Fine,” he admitted. “But would you want to stay here by yourself and let me handle it on my own?” Hannah made no reply at that and pressed herself closer to him. He cradled her head and snickered. “Mmhm, thought so. Speaking of which, did you bring that knife I gave you?”

With quick, shaky hands Hannah disentangled herself from his embrace and unclasped the notch of her evening bag. She rummaged inside for a minute and took out a short handheld tantō. Irakusa was its name, or “Stinging Nettle,” due in large part to the leafy green silk wrapped around its hilt. Satoru had loaned it to her after training one morning. It was nothing special. The slender blade reached no farther than her forefinger, tip slanted like the point of a katana; a Cursed Tool; Japanese surgical steel; wicked sharp. He had told her to carry it with her in public at all times.

“Atta girl,” Satoru said, eyeing the tool. He then took her evening bag from her and hurriedly stuffed it in his pocket with his phone, glancing sparingly at the diamond cuffs on her wrist. Accessories would hinder her movement and attract unwanted attention. “Better hand me those too while you’re at it too. And the gloves.” Hannah did what she was asked, slipping off the jewelry and satin gloves for him to hoard inside his pockets, but she could keep the earrings. Fitting what he could inside, he reached forward and grabbed her ungloved hand. “Come on. Staying put won’t do us any — Wait, what are you…?”

She hadn’t surrendered the knife. Gojo could do nothing except watch her drag the small tactical blade up the side of her dress, embellishments and crystal beads haphazardly popping off as it sliced through the chiffon like an orange peel, revealing a smooth leg underneath.

“I can’t run in this,” she answered him, rotating her newly freed leg. “Now I can.”

Satoru released his breath. Seeing her turn the blade on herself had caused him to panic for a second, and he wasn’t quite sure how she knew where to cut with such limited lighting, but he had to say. The idea was pretty smart. That is, if you got over the fact she had just carved up a dress worth more than a Ferrari.

He stood guard and waited for her to complete the alterations, careful not to stare too long at her ungartered leg before taking her hand once more.

“Cool. Let’s go.”

“Hold on,” Hannah urged, pulling him back. “There’s something else I need to tell you.” She waited for Satoru to glance back over his shoulder to show he was listening. Hannah squeezed his hand. “The curse. I think it’s a finger bearer. One of Sukuna’s.”

She felt his arm tense up. “Sukuna? You sure?”

She nodded. “It looked almost identical to the one from the Louvre. Had the same markings too.”

Husband and wife stared at each other for a long, almost frightened moment. Satoru’s lips pressed together as he hummed contemplatively, mental gears turning, spinning, thinking. This was bound to complicate matters. If what Hannah said was correct, they weren’t dealing with your average, run-of-the-mill curse. They had to be careful, her more so than him.

“Keep a hold of that knife,” he said, and gave her hand a weak tug before taking the first step.

The Domain gave the impression they were traversing through the inner bowels of some giant worm cave. It was cold and damp. The walls looked wet and the ground was tumbled and dredged in connective tissue like mucosa. Their shoes made an unnatural squelching noise with each perilous step. Hannah imagined the two of them slowly being digested, wandering deeper and deeper inside the Domain, until every last cell in their bodies were reduced to thin soluble mush.

Her toes were blistering from the heels she wore. She thought of taking them off and going barefoot, but every so often they’d catch the dull shimmer of something sharp and metallic reflecting dully off the flesh covered ground like a rusted pipe or an old metal prong.

They eventually came across what looked to be, by all accounts, a colossal bone, obstructing their path like a fallen tree. There was enough space for them to climb over to the other side. Having a much taller physique, Satoru hoisted himself atop the fossilized trunk and reached down for Hannah to grab. “Up-ze-daizey,” he sang in English, pulling her up like a sack of feathers. Hannah found herself wondering more and more how he knew English slang so well and joined him atop the huge bone. He then slid off the other side, landing feet-first on the sodden ground with a loud squash and turned around, holding out his hands for her jump. He caught her by the waist as she fell.

“Watch yer step there, lil’ lady,” he twanged in an American accent as though tipping a cowboy hat. He was trying to get her to smile again like he did outside the theater, and it was somewhat working, though the feeling soon dissipated once they turned the next corner.

Hannah blanched at the sight of a wall - if one had the audacity to call it a wall - of blinking round eyeballs. Even in the dark she could make out the red veins branching inside the slimy white sclerae, pupils tracking their every movement. It was hard to guess how many there were. Fifty at least. Maybe twice that. They scuttled quietly towards them, the patter of little crab legs, silent, unspeaking, creeping ever closer. Hannah let out a tiny whimper the nearer they got and eventually Satoru, too, had had enough. He pulled Hannah behind him and glared menacingly at the queasy colony of eyeballs.

“What’re you looking at?” he sneered.

The Six Eyes stopped the tiny beasts dead in their tracks. In a mad scurrying rush, they retreated to the innermost corner of the “wall” where a long jagged hole crusted the isinglass surface like a gaping mouth, slurping them up one by one, until hundreds of hideous bloodshot eyes were staring at them inside that one hollow crack. She felt Satoru tug on her wrist. “C’mon, Hannah. They're not gonna get you.” She was glad when they moved out of their sight.

Satoru led them through intestinal tunnels that snaked and twisted. They tried using the flashlights on their phones again, but the devices were uncooperative. Hannah’s vision had adjusted better to the dark, though she couldn’t see much except her husband's gossamer white hair and the occasional flicker of his blue eyes. They hadn’t reached a dead end, or tripped over anything. There were no signs of the curse. It had her wondering.

“Um, Satoru?”

“Yeah?”

“How do you know where we’re going?”

“Where we’re going? Ha, that’s easy,” he chuckled. “I don’t.”

“No, I mean how can you see in front of you?”

“Oh.”

Hannah collided with him as he abruptly stopped and whipped around, bracing her by the arms so she wouldn’t plummet to the mushy ground.

“Oops, sorry,” he apologized.

Hannah looked at him, his frame towering more than a foot above her. “What’s wrong? Why did we stop?”

“Nothing. I’m just taking a second to answer your question is all.”

He must’ve found Hannah’s look amusing because his soft rumbling laughter echoed throughout the chilling darkness.

“Remember when I told you about my curse technique. About Infinity and the Limitless?”

“Yes, I remember,” she said. “You have the ability to repel and attract things. You showed me.”

“Right, but did I explain how the Six Eyes plays a role in that? What it is they actually do?”

She took a moment to mull it over. No, he hadn’t explained the connection. Fr. O’Malley mentioned the Six Eyes in vague terms, placing emphasis on the Limitless and the bloodshed between the Gojo and Zen’in families, but nothing more. Truthfully, Hannah had no idea what they were other than rare, beautiful colored eyes. What role did they play with the use of Infinity and the Limitless?

Satoru took both her hands and guided them upwards in the dark, gingerly prying the fingers open so they could cup his jawline. She saw him perfectly now, the lustrous pools of turquoise blue swirling down at her. The sky. She was holding the sky in her hands.

“The Six Eyes is an ocular jujutsu technique with many uses,” he began carefully. “Anyone in the Gojo family can inherit the Limitless, but it’s only those born with the Six Eyes who can harness its true power. Long story short, these eyes grant me the cognitive ability to see and process cursed energy in precise detail. I can see how it flows, differentiate between other types and use it to my advantage. That’s why I can repel and attract stuff. Because I’m able to distinguish cursed energies so precisely, it allows me to control and manipulate time and space.”

“Incredible,” Hannah said, brushing her thumbs along his cheek bones. “Your eyes can do all that?”

“Mmm, yeah, well sorta,” he said, tapping his forefingers against the sides of his noggin as he kept her hands on his face. “It’s mostly mental. My eyes work in tandem with my brain which is how I process everything; Kind of like how a super computer can sort copious amounts of data faster and more efficiently than normal computers. I can also identify things from great distances and see through solid objects.”  

“Solid objects?”

“Yup; concrete, steel, brick, you name it,” he said, candidly listing them off with ease. “Like Superman’s x-ray vision.”

A dismal laugh escaped Hannah’s lips. Leave it to Satoru to make a comic book reference. She lowered her hands from his face and began playing with his wrinkled shirt collar. The bow tie looped around his neck was gone. Her hands glided absentmindedly to a frayed thread unraveling near a button hole and twisted it around her finger. He could see through anything. Solid objects. X-ray vision. Superman…Anything… Anything. Hannah glanced down at the monstrous slit revealing her leg. The epiphany came to her like a bolt from the blue, as if everything she’d come to understand about the universe had suddenly been little more than an ill-conceived hoax and she’d been royally conned. Hannah couldn’t keep the words from spilling out, fingers relinquishing the shirt thread as though it were a live wire.

“Uh, hello? Earth to Hannah.” Satoru waved a hand in front of her pale stricken face. “You’re weirding me out, Princess — Quick, how many fingers am I holding up?”

“Can the Six Eyes see through clothing, Satoru?”

The question punctured him like a sword bayonet through the chest. Damn, this was it, he thought. This was karma; For every action, there was an equal and opposite reaction; eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth; that brutal second arrow hurling towards him at breakneck speed. A third. A fourth. Improbable to stop. All there was left to do now was accept defeat and collect his losses. Would it be right to tell her how he had memorized every mole on her skin; internally traced the ample curvature of her bosom, the tantalizing dip between her thighs he so badly wanted to explore with his steepled fingers? He had to swallow it down.

“Maybe.”

She pressed further.

“How often is ‘maybe?’”

Shit. Lie, Satoru. Tell her it was an accident. Tell her it happened once and you’ll never do it again. Go on, say it. Tell her.

“A couple times,” he confessed, feeling a dampness underneath his shirt. “When you’re alone.” Shut up, Satoru. Shut up. “In the bath.”

There was an awkward pause. Hannah looked down at her shoes with a vacant, inscrutable expression that terrified him for reasons he didn’t want to combat.

“In the bath,” she said. “I see.”

His chest panged with guilty remorse. Dammit, why did he have to open his big fat fucking mouth? He had planned on telling her, explain that nudity wasn’t anything to be self-conscious about, but now that plan had gone to shit. This was the worst possible moment to be having this discussion. He had to think of something, fast.

“Hannah,” he started, gingerly grabbing her by the shoulders. “Believe me, I wanted to tell you sooner, but —“

“You’ve seen me naked, Satoru.”  Her voice dropped a notch. “Without my knowing.”

“I know, I know, and I’m — ”

“There’s a certain word for that.”

“I know, yes, you’re right,” he continued. “You’re totally right, and I’m sorry, but I can’t help it. Most times the act is involuntary.”

Her eyes seemed to shift. A rare sort of fury he hadn’t seen her wear before, like he was confronted with a whole other person and not the sweet, patient Hannah he’d come to know and admire.

“Oh, so it’s involuntary to look at someone when they’re bathing? Men have no control over their actions? Is that what you're saying?”

“What!? No, of course not. I  — ”

“Your eyes have a mind of their own then?!”

“Hannah, that’s not — ”

“You don’t have the right, Satoru.” He could register the notes of betrayal and repressed anguish vying for supremacy in her voice. Her lip trembled, the strained, painful look of someone on the verge of crying again. “None of you have the...”

Fresh tears began cascading down her cheeks and Satoru felt like an important piece of him had crawled into a ditch and died. He had hurt her. She was crying because of something he did, on top of the fact they were tracking a curse that could attack at any moment, but Satoru knew she wasn’t crying because of him being a peeping Tom, no, it was so much more than that.

We’re kindred spirits, you and I.

All his life Satoru was forced to grapple with the unfair reality that he wasn't like normal kids. He could remember himself at five, accompanying Makoto (then his nanny) on the train ride home from preschool. He had to stay behind afterwards for sending a kid to the nurse’s office with a bloody nose - that’s what happened to dweebs who picked on him and called him names - and as last minute passengers were boarding the train, a hulking boulder of a man plodded his way up the boarding ramp and seated himself inside the jam packed coach. The baggy clothes hid the extent of his maladies, but Satoru saw every one.

The dude had a big ole wart sprouting between the sill of his nose. He stank of cheap liquor and urine, was at least a hundred pounds overweight, and his lungs were tarred black from years of heavy chain smoking. But the more pressing issue was the yellow, foamy puss festering out the tip of his limp phallus, indicating he had contracted some sort of STI. That was Satoru’s first real encounter with involuntary nudity. It came without warning. One second he was an innocent, happy-go-lucky kid with perfectly normal vision on his way home from school, and then suddenly, bam, everybody was huddled around him on the train, butt-naked and oblivious. He could see into their bodies: heart defibrillators, bone implants, tampons. That metaphor public speakers use whenever they get nervous, the one where they’re told to imagine the audience sitting in their underwear? Yeah, the Six Eyes took that analogy to new soaring heights, except nudity wasn’t even the tip of the iceberg. No, not by a long shot.

For two years after that day, Satoru struggled with life debilitating headaches. His senses were off the charts. He could perceive infrared radiation and ultraviolet light, the full color spectrum thought only visible to arachnids and reptiles. He saw various cursed energies; blobs of red, pinks, and purples splattered every which way, the rarest being a black flash that glowed whenever someone executed the perfect punch, and as he previously mentioned, he could see through solid objects and zoom things in and out of focus: a stag beetle lumbering up the side of a oak tree from three kilometers above, or the microscopic chloroplasts stuffed inside a mulberry leaf like tiny green caviar. However, Satoru did try extra hard not to see through people’s clothing, mostly because it was weird and not always sexy (especially when it was someone he knew), although the structure of fabric was “permeable” in relation to steel and concrete. He often used the analogy of a soap bubble. Trying not to peek through fabric was like trying not to pop a soap bubble. Any loss of focus or slip of concentration, and the bubble would burst. Pop. Bye, bye, clothing.

He gained better control of it as time went on, learning to alternate the varying eyesights like you would a phoropter at a vision exam: infrared, ultraviolet, zoom in, zoom out. Can you see better through lense 1, Mr. Gojo? How bout 2? With added practice the switching became effortless, like breathing oxygen or memorizing the shortcuts on a calculator. It was more tolerable at night, which was why he stupidly left his glasses folded on his dresser, thinking he wouldn’t need them. Idiot. He could already feel the headache clambering up the base of his skull like a brain-sucking leech, and on top of that, he left the Bufferin tablets in the lining pocket of his tails, draped seamlessly along the folded theater seat. Due to his insanely high metabolism, he usually needed twice the recommended dose, but there was a time when no amount of ibuprofen was enough to kill the migraines, and he was taken out of school because of it.

His home education was relatively undemanding, if you set aside the hand lashings he so generously received for having recited the Classic of Filial Piety incorrectly (albeit, on purpose), but by and large he was given the best tutors, trainers, and physicians money could buy, yet for all the privilege and wealth, his spoiled upbringing was a painfully isolated one with almost no freedom. He tended to be rough with the visiting children and prone to bouts of anger, blindly punching his frustrations out on anyone who made fun of his hair, or called him a “freak.” And his family seldom helped in that department, touting him around like an expensive artifact, making it difficult for five year old Satoru to interpret whether he was genuinely loved, or propped up as some kind of rare collectors item; a bargaining chip used to tilt the power dynamic in the Gojo family’s favor after a stagnant 400 years. It was always “Six Eyes that” and “Six Eyes this” and “Here, sweetie, have another cookie.”

Satoru had been told all his life he was special, that the blood of Sugawara no Michizane flowed through his veins and he was destined for greatness. But all it did was make him resentful of the way it had taken over his life. Deep down he wanted people to stop treating him like a hamster on an exercise wheel, and more like a human being. Ask him how he felt for a change. Tell him he was doing a good fucking job and that the higher-ups could go hang themselves cause if he wasn’t the Six Eyes wielder then who was he really?

Hannah knew. Heck, she was one of the few people willing to try. Enough to where he could drop the cocky, jokester routine and be himself. Just him. Just Satoru. He couldn’t necessarily do the same with Shoko, or even his devoted housekeeper who he viewed more as a mother than his actual mother. He was a serious person in Hannah’s eyes, and he felt inclined to believe their friendship wasn’t based solely on the condition they were married. She didn’t treat him like a weapon or an incarnated deity, because she knew. She knew what it was like to have your life dictated by forces beyond your control, and better still, she hadn’t shown signs of being afraid of him since their handshake in the Starbucks. Things had been going so well.

Until the very moment he opened his big fucking mouth.

Nice going, Satoru. Let’s see you try and talk your way out of this one.

He rubbed his face with his hands, like he was washing without water, and blew a vexing sigh. “Look, you can yell at me all you want once we’re back home, but for now we need to stay…Hannah?”

Satoru looked to his side.

Hannah was nowhere to be found.

Chapter Contents

[hexixixi]

Blog 6 Assess

As a country renowned for frequent earthquakes, I believe it's important to be aware of Japan's seismic activity before traveling there. Statistics show that there are an average of four mild earthquakes per day across the country, with at least one major earthquake of magnitude 6 or higher occurring annually. The likelihood of experiencing a mild earthquake in such a seismic-prone country is not negligible.

Before traveling to Japan, I think it's crucial to read up on the official earthquake guidelines provided by the government or online. As a region frequently affected by earthquakes, Japan has a comprehensive set of anti-seismic measures. For instance, all buildings in Japan are strictly constructed in accordance with anti-seismic standards. We often see in anime that Japanese students carry square-shaped backpacks, which actually contain iron plates for protecting their heads during an earthquake. In the popular anime "Chibi Maruko-chan," elementary school students all carry square-shaped backpacks for this purpose. This shows that Japan's earthquake prevention measures are well developed. Therefore, before going to Japan, we can learn more about official evacuation shelters and earthquake prevention measures to prevent accidents.

If an earthquake occurs, it's important to stay away from high-rise buildings if you're outside. We need to find an open area or official shelter and stay there until the earthquake ends. If you're inside, you should hide in a corner or under a desk or chair while protecting your head, which is the most important thing.

[sergioguymanproust]

We live at the water’s edge.A place where no insurance company would dare selling you coverage. Where an unpredicted storm could hit you and that would be the end of you. One more attempt to reign you in. But no , you aren’t an isolated case,millions live at the danger zone, because of the sunsets,the white noise generated by the surf,and the starry nights,the rest is pure conjecture,haaa.The sea level rises and falls like a breathing dragon and we sleep soundly by his side.The glaciers are melting away ,disappearing and the sea is beginning to show signs of these changes, we are told not to worry it won’t happen in our lifetime, but these people have been wrong before.The science is never perfect.Actually things are already underway.Why hybrid humans are so stubborn, so difficult when it comes to survival? I live in one of the most active places in the world , the so called Rim of Fire. Japan ,these islands sit on a bed of seismic faults,and volcanoes, but life goes on.Common sense dictates to avoid areas of constant flooding,quakes,forest fires,and other disasters but no,we keep on building and when the proverbial excrement hits the fan ,there we go crying and mourning the losses.Well, it is obvious to me ,that we hybrid humans are not truly awake, we are masochistic at heart .Earth is indeed a dangerous planet and we will continue to disregard the warnings ,until it’s too late.Words by Sergio GuymanProust.

[spacenutspod]

Volcanoes are not restricted to the land, there are many undersea versions. One such undersea volcano known as Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai off the coast of Tonga. On 15th January 2022, it underwent an eruption which was one of the most powerful in recent memory. A recent paper shows that seismic waves were released 15 minutes before the eruption and before any visible disruption at the surface. The waves had been detected by a seismic station 750km away. This is the first time a precursor signal has been detected.  Undersea volcanoes are openings in the Earth’s crust beneath the ocean, where magma from the mantle escapes, triggering eruptions. They are surprisingly common, with most of Earth’s volcanic activity occurring underwater, particularly along mid-ocean ridges and subduction zones. They play a vital role in creating new seafloor through seafloor spreading, as magma cools and solidifies into basaltic crust. Some grow so tall that they rise above the ocean’s surface, forming volcanic islands such as Iceland and Hawaii. Their eruptions release significant amounts of gas, heat, and minerals into the surrounding water, shaping marine ecosystems. An erupting undersea volcano forms a new island off the coast of Nishinoshima, a small unihabited island in the southern Ogasawara chain of islands. The image was taken on November 21, 2013 by the Japanese Coast Guard. The Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai volcano is an undersea volcano located in the South Pacific. It became well known after its massive eruption in January 2022. The eruption was one of the most powerful volcanic events of the 21st century, triggering tsunamis that affected coastlines as far away as Japan and the Americas. The explosion released a plume of ash, gas, and water vapour, reaching over 50 kilometres into the atmosphere, making it the highest plume ever recorded. It impacted global weather patterns and temporarily increased water vapour in the stratosphere. The eruption of January 2022 formed a caldera on Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai. There were disturbances that were recorded by many surface stations and satellites in orbit. The data which had been captured revealed that the eruptions began just after 04:00 UTC on 15 January. There were a number of reports of seismic waves from around 15 minutes before the onset of eruption. In a paper published recently by lead author Takuro Horiuchi and a team from the University of Tokyo, they explore the wave detection and mechanics of the eruption.  Volcanic eruptions at Mt. Etna from orbiting NASA Terra Satellite. Acquired on January 11, 2011. NASA Earth Observatory Image of the Day on January 15, 2011. Credit: NASA Terra Satellite The team aim to confirm that the event actually occurred just before the 04:00 published timestamp. If they can confirm this, it will help understand the processes that led to the violent eruption. At the time of the eruption, no seismic stations had been working on Tonga but data had been recorded as far away as Fiji and Futuna, both of which around 750km away from the volcano.  The study concluded that the waves which had been detected were Rayleigh waves – a type of seismic waves which are a combination of compression (longitudinal) and shearing (vertical) movements. The waves started around 03:45 on the 15th January 15 minutes before the onset of the eruption. This is the first time significant seismic activity has been seen before the eruption event. It demonstrates that seismic stations hundreds of kilometres away can be positively used to detect signals as precursors to eruptions. Source : A Seismic Precursor 15 min Before the Giant Eruption of Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai Volcano on 15 January 2022 The post There Was a 15 Minute Warning Before Tonga Volcano Exploded appeared first on Universe Today.

[studiolevez]

https://practicalportugal.blogspot.com/2024/09/earthquakes-in-portugal-our-experience.html

Earthquakes in Portugal - Our Experience and a Seismic History

We experienced our first earthquake in Portugal at 6:11 am on August 26, 2024. It lasted around 10 seconds and felt like a large forestry machine passing by the house. I stepped onto the balcony, thinking we might need to move the car, but was surprised to see no one outside. After checking online, we discovered it was an earthquake off the coast of Lisbon. 

The earthquake registered 5.3 on the Richter scale, with the epicenter located 58 kilometers west of Sines in the Atlantic Ocean, at a depth of 21 kilometers, according to the IPMA. The tremors were strongest in the Sines, Lisbon, and Setúbal regions, with reports on social media noting that it was felt as far as France, Spain, and Morocco.

We didn’t have any damage to the house. I was aware of the earthquake risk before moving to Portugal so had added earthquake insurance to our coverage.

Portugal is not typically known for its seismic activity compared to other regions such as Japan or California. However, the country has experienced several significant earthquakes throughout its history, some of which have had profound impacts on its development and culture.

Geological Setting

Portugal's seismic activity is primarily influenced by its position near the boundary between the Eurasian and African tectonic plates. The interaction between these plates, along with the presence of fault lines such as the Azores-Gibraltar Transform Fault, contributes to the region's earthquake risk. The most seismically active areas in Portugal are the Azores islands, due to their proximity to the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, and the southern mainland, particularly around Lisbon and the Algarve region.

Historical Earthquakes

The 1755 Lisbon Earthquake

1755 copper engraving of the Lisbon Earthquake

The 1755 Lisbon earthquake is arguably the most significant and devastating earthquake in Portuguese history. Occurring on November 1, 1755, this earthquake, with an estimated magnitude of 8.5 to 9.0, struck the capital city of Lisbon and had far-reaching impacts on both the city and Europe as a whole.

The earthquake's epicenter was in the Atlantic Ocean, about 200 km west-southwest of Cape St. Vincent. The initial shock was followed by a series of aftershocks and a massive tsunami, which caused widespread destruction along the coasts of Portugal, Spain, and North Africa. Fires that broke out in Lisbon after the earthquake compounded the disaster, leading to an estimated death toll of 30,000 to 50,000 people.

The Lisbon earthquake had profound social, economic, and philosophical repercussions. The widespread destruction led to a significant rebuilding effort, spearheaded by the Marquis of Pombal, who implemented modern urban planning and construction techniques to make the city more resilient to future earthquakes. Philosophically, the disaster influenced Enlightenment thinkers such as Voltaire and Rousseau, who debated the implications of such natural disasters on human society and the concept of divine intervention.

The 1969 Earthquake

On February 28, 1969, Portugal experienced another significant earthquake, known as the 1969 Lisbon earthquake. With a magnitude of 7.8, this earthquake struck off the southwestern coast of Portugal, near the Gorringe Bank. Although less devastating than the 1755 earthquake, the 1969 event caused substantial damage in the Algarve region and was felt throughout the country.

The earthquake resulted in the loss of several lives and caused extensive property damage, particularly in older buildings that were not constructed to withstand seismic activity. This event highlighted the ongoing seismic risks in Portugal and prompted further studies and improvements in building codes and earthquake preparedness.

The 1980 Azores Earthquake

The Azores archipelago, located in the Atlantic Ocean, is a seismically active region due to its proximity to the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. On January 1, 1980, the Azores experienced a devastating earthquake with a magnitude of 7.2. The earthquake's epicenter was near Terceira Island, and it caused significant destruction on Terceira, São Jorge, and Graciosa islands.

The 1980 earthquake resulted in the deaths of 73 people and left thousands homeless. The destruction of buildings and infrastructure necessitated a large-scale reconstruction effort. This event underscored the vulnerability of the Azores to seismic activity and led to improved monitoring and preparedness measures in the region.

Recent Seismic Activity

In recent years, Portugal has continued to experience seismic activity, although less severe than the historical earthquakes mentioned above. For example, in January 2010, an earthquake with a magnitude of 6.0 struck near the Madeira Islands, causing minor damage but no fatalities. Similarly, in February 2019, a magnitude 4.4 earthquake occurred in the Algarve region, reminding residents of the ongoing seismic risks.

Causes of Earthquakes in Portugal

The primary cause of earthquakes in Portugal is the tectonic activity associated with the boundary between the Eurasian and African plates. The following factors contribute to seismic activity in the region:

1. **Plate Tectonics:** The convergence and interaction between the Eurasian and African plates generate stress and deformation in the Earth's crust, leading to earthquakes. The Azores-Gibraltar Transform Fault, which runs near the Azores archipelago and towards the Mediterranean, is a significant source of seismic activity.

2. **Mid-Atlantic Ridge:** The Azores islands are situated near the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, a divergent boundary where the Eurasian and North American plates are moving apart. This tectonic setting results in frequent volcanic and seismic activity in the region.

3. **Fault Lines:** Numerous fault lines traverse Portugal, including the Marquês de Pombal fault and the Lower Tagus Valley fault. These faults can generate earthquakes when stress accumulates and is suddenly released along the fault planes.

Earthquake Preparedness and Mitigation

Portugal has made significant strides in improving earthquake preparedness and mitigation measures in response to its seismic history. Key efforts include:

1. Seismic Monitoring and Early Warning Systems: Portugal has established a network of seismic monitoring stations to detect and analyze earthquake activity. Early warning systems are being developed to provide timely alerts to residents and authorities, allowing for rapid response and evacuation if necessary.

2. Building Codes and Construction Standards: Following the lessons learned from past earthquakes, Portugal has implemented strict building codes and construction standards to ensure that new buildings are designed to withstand seismic forces. Retrofitting older buildings to improve their earthquake resilience is also a priority.

3. Public Awareness and Education: Public awareness campaigns and education programs aim to inform residents about earthquake risks and preparedness measures. These initiatives include guidelines on how to secure homes, create emergency plans, and conduct earthquake drills.

4. Emergency Response and Recovery Plans: Portugal has developed comprehensive emergency response and recovery plans to coordinate efforts during and after an earthquake. These plans involve government agencies, emergency services, and community organizations working together to provide immediate assistance and support long-term recovery.

Case Study: The 1755 Lisbon Earthquake

The 1755 Lisbon earthquake serves as a crucial case study in understanding the impacts of seismic events and the importance of preparedness and resilience.

Causes and Characteristics:

The 1755 earthquake occurred on All Saints' Day, a major Catholic holiday, which exacerbated its impact as many people were in churches that collapsed during the quake. The earthquake was followed by a series of aftershocks and a massive tsunami that inundated coastal areas. The fires that broke out in the aftermath caused further destruction.

Impact on Lisbon:

Lisbon, the capital of Portugal, was the hardest hit. The earthquake destroyed much of the city, including nearly all of its major churches and many other buildings. The tsunami and fires compounded the devastation, leaving tens of thousands dead and many more homeless.

Reconstruction and Resilience:

The Marquis of Pombal, who led the reconstruction efforts, implemented a series of measures to rebuild Lisbon with improved resilience. These included:

1. Urban Planning: Pombal introduced modern urban planning principles, with wide streets, large squares, and uniform building heights to facilitate emergency response and reduce fire risk.

2. Building Regulations: New buildings were constructed with anti-seismic features, such as wooden frameworks known as "Pombaline cages" that provided flexibility and strength to withstand future earthquakes.

3. Economic Reforms: Pombal's economic reforms aimed to revive Lisbon's economy, including measures to support commerce, industry, and agriculture.

Philosophical and Cultural Impact:

The 1755 earthquake had a profound impact on European philosophy and culture. Enlightenment thinkers such as Voltaire and Rousseau used the disaster to explore themes of human suffering, divine intervention, and the role of science and reason in understanding natural phenomena. The earthquake influenced debates about the nature of God, the problem of evil, and the ability of humans to control and mitigate natural disasters.

Recent Advances in Seismology and Engineering

Advances in seismology and engineering continue to enhance Portugal's ability to prepare for and respond to earthquakes.

Seismic Hazard Assessment:

Improved seismic hazard assessment techniques, including the use of historical data, geological surveys, and probabilistic models, provide more accurate estimates of earthquake risks in different regions of Portugal. These assessments inform building codes, land-use planning, and emergency preparedness efforts.

Earthquake-Resistant Design:

Modern engineering practices focus on designing structures that can withstand seismic forces. Innovations in materials, construction techniques, and structural design enhance the earthquake resilience of buildings, bridges, and other infrastructure. Retrofitting older buildings to meet current seismic standards is an ongoing priority.

Early Warning Systems: 

Earthquake warning systems are advanced technologies designed to detect seismic activity and provide early alerts before the strongest shaking from an earthquake reaches populated areas. These systems are crucial for minimizing damage and saving lives by giving people and organizations precious seconds to take protective actions, such as evacuating buildings, halting transportation systems, and shutting down critical infrastructure like power plants and gas lines.

The basic concept behind earthquake warning systems is to detect the less destructive primary waves (P-waves) that travel faster through the Earth than the more damaging secondary waves (S-waves). P-waves are typically the first signals of an earthquake, and by identifying them, the system can issue a warning before the S-waves, which cause most of the shaking, arrive. The time between the detection and the arrival of the S-waves can range from a few seconds to over a minute, depending on the location of the epicenter and the system's efficiency.

Countries like Japan, Mexico, and the United States have developed sophisticated early warning systems. Japan’s "J-Alert" system and Mexico’s "SASMEX" provide residents with alerts through TV, radio, and mobile networks. The United States, particularly in California, has implemented the "ShakeAlert" system, which is designed to send alerts to smartphones, giving users time to "Drop, Cover, and Hold On."

The effectiveness of earthquake warning systems depends on factors like proximity to the epicenter and the system’s coverage area. While these systems can significantly reduce injuries and deaths, they do have limitations, particularly for earthquakes that occur very close to urban areas, where warning times may be too short. However, as technology continues to improve, these systems are becoming more reliable and accessible, offering a critical layer of protection against the dangers of earthquakes.