Via Wired: 5 Most Dangerous U.S. Earthquake Hot Spots Beyond California and one anomaly.
NEW MADRID:
Most of the major earthquakes in the world occur at tectonic plate boundaries where land masses are colliding or pushing past one another. But in the middle of the country lurks a geological enigma near New Madrid, Missouri, that has produced some of the largest quakes on record for the United States but has yet to be fully explained by scientists.
"It's a big mystery," said geologist Eugene Schweig of the U.S. Geological Survey, who has studied the area for 23 years. "New Madrid is about as far from a plate boundary as you can get."
In 1811 and 1812, a swarm of at least three massive earthquakes struck near New Madrid, the largest of which exceeded a magnitude 8 and caused violent, damaging shaking in an area 10 times larger than did the 1906 earthquake. The quake was felt over an area of two million square miles — nearly two-thirds of the country.
During the quakes, the ground rose and fell, trees were bent, deep cracks opened up in the ground, large landslides swept down hills, huge waves washed boats out of the Mississippi River and river banks, islands and sand bars gave way.
Damage was widespread, but only a few people died thanks to the sparse population in what was then the Louisiana Territory but today is near the junction of Missouri, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee and Arkansas. Were another magnitude 8 earthquake to strike the region today, the toll would be much, much higher.
By analyzing deposits of sand that squirted out of the ground during past major quakes, Schweig and others estimate an average time between earthquakes of 500 years. But earthquakes are impossible to predict, and because scientists aren't even sure why major quakes occur away from plate boundaries, it is even more difficult to estimate a probability for New Madrid.
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COMPARING A MAP OF OIL SEEPS IN CALIFORNIA AND THE RED AREA SHOWING EARTHQUAKE ACTIVITY IN CALIFORNIA
Take a look at the earthquake map of California and the linked map of California oil seeps.
The coast range of California is the most active area for Earthquakes and interestingly enough that's also where most of the oil seeps are located.
DOES ABIOTIC OIL THEORY MATTER ANYMORE?
Webtraffic to "Peak" oil sites is down. "Peak" Oil as an ongoing concern is melting away.
Even 'doomers' are waking up to the fact that oil isn't running out. Civilization as we know it will still be around tomorrow.
The Doomers are really bummed out!
Here is a discussion of possible future oil prices.
With crude oil likely to drop below $60 a barrel, no matter what OPEC does, worries about "Peak" oil are going the way of the Dodo bird.
The peekers think they're just going into hibernation until the "next time" the economy starts to fly, but I got news for them, general acceptance of Abiotic Oil theory will smother them while they're still defenseless in a state of suspended animation.
Like a good science-fiction pot boiler -- except this time for real. Nobody will hear their scream.
Mmmm ha ha ha...!
We've already heard their strangled whimpering right here on this website.
But what Abiotic Oil theory?
No, it will continue to advance in general public acceptance.
Why?
Because as a scientific question, the evidence will continue to build over time in favor of Abiotic Oil theory as Man goes ever deeper and ever farther into the depths of the Earth's crust to find petroleum.
Particularly, as Man goes ever deeper and ever farther into the ocean depths to find oil in geologic locations that can't possibly be the result of "fossil" theory.
An answer to this question will have a tremendous impact on any possible future run-up in oil prices.
Because as opposed to earlier oil busts, this one occurs as ultra-deepwater, ultra-deep drilling offshore has reached a tidal wave of activity and capital investment.
There is no going back, possibly delayed, yes, but no going back.
The economy will recover and oil demand will go up, but the next time price will be tempered by the reality that oil is abiotic and "Peak" oil was nothing but a nasty hoax put out by environmental peekers and oil bulls trying to "bounce" the market for their own selfish benefit.
The building evidence of Abiotic Oil theory is like the sands of an hourglasss or like Chinese water torture...drip...drip...drip.
As much as members of the oil industry hate to admit it -- they will explore for oil wherever they can find it. That will inevitably lead the oil industry to drilling deeper in deeper water.
Dr. Drill dictates their logic.
Perhaps, the oil industry will be "nomalized" with the knowledge crude oil is abiotic.
What do I mean by "normalized"?
Normal businesses and investments can expect roughly a 10% profit margin.
Should the oil industry be limited to that profit level, oil will be reasonable and the rest of the economy will thrive.
General public knowledge and acceptance of Abiotic Oil is an inevitable reality.
"Get to know it."
ScienceDaily (Oct. 27, 2008) — "A new technique using X-rays has enabled scientists to play 'detective' and solve the debate about the origins of a three billion year old rock fragment."
The article is short and well worth reading.
The article goes on to suggest this technique can be used to unravel other mysteries of early planet formation and more important development.
The type of rocks examined are called "komatiites" which have been previously discussed on this website in the course of discussing geological characteristics of the mantle in reference to Abiotic Oil theory.
The article also says this reported observation technique has dispelled some long held theories on early planetary development.
I'm shocked...shocked...that long held theories has been "dispelled".
Perhaps this technique will help add scientific weight on one side or the other on the Abiotic Oil controversy.
New X-ray Production Technique .... the greatest thing since, well, scotch tape!
TIME FOR BASIC ABIOTIC RESEARCH: A CASE STUDY
Any scientific endeavor rises or falls on basic analysis and interpretation of scientifc observations.
Or re-interpretation as the case may be -- Abiotic Oil theory subsists mostly on re-interpretation of "fossil" theory analysis. But there are important exceptions where original Abiotic Oil theory observation and analysis has been done.
(Admittedly, there are limitations to what can be gathered on the internet, but a lot can be accomplished. Although, caution in in order because there is no complete substitute for field research in the Earth sciences.)
Seismic imaging is the "hot" technology for the geo-sciences.
The following two images and discussions are linked:
Sedimentary Basins and Petroleum Geology, Image of the week #5
Clastic Detritus: Sea-Floor Sunday #32: Mud volcano and associated mud flows
After viewing the two images what is in common between the two?
Both are bulges, one that has a mud volcano in it's center and the other is a "bulge" very close to a rift.
Mud volcanoes have been discussed before on the Oil Is Mastery website regarding the scientific evidence that they are the result of Abiotic processes.
Martin Hovland is a geologist for StatoilHydro, a Norwegian oil company.
Martin Hovland's website provides an excellent discussion of mud volcanoes.
The dominate theme is that mud volcanoes result from intense pressures deep underground.
On land mud volcanoes have generated enough pressure to cause deformation of the area around the mud volcano and even fracture and displace large geologic rock formations.
This intense pressure is inconsistent with "fossil" theory because natural progression is for dispersion rather than concentration.
Hovland states: "Kilometre thick layers of mud (clay) covers the world’s oceanic crust and portions of continental crust. Where does all this clay originate? Rivers and glaciers is a common answer. However, there may be another, much more active and virulent culprit – the deep-ocean hot vents and buried hydrothermal systems."
Please scroll down Hovland's mud volcano website to the picture of a violent nature gas flame.
The picture's caption reads: "Natural supersonic gas blowout from mud volcano photographed from Baku, 1958. Flame height = 750 m, distance = 20 km."
Now that is what I call intense pressure.
So, going back to the mud volcano depicted off the Nigerian Coast, remember this is a highly prolific offshore oil area.
So could this bulge be the result of intense pressure caused by abiotic oil?
Now, lets move to consideration of the first image.
The author of the paper that presents that image was asked this question:
"I'm curious, what, if any, significance does this have in regards to petroleum deposits and the successful exploration for same?"
This is the authors response:
"In itself, the image is probably not that helpful for petroleum exploration. I've used it to try to get some idea of the timing of faulting in the study area. If you knew the timing of hydrocarbon migration in your basin, the fault timing might tell you about seal/trap integrity. If the faults were active after hydrocarbon migration, there's a good chance that fault traps would be disrupted.
However, if you go back to the dataset from which the image was derived, it can tell you quite a lot. It is possible to map out the units that are juxtaposed across the fault: this can give important information on the likelihood of sealing across the fault.
In the study area, there is no oil or gas. But the area can be used as an analogue for other geologically similar hydrocarbon provinces. Most obviously this applies to the offshore Gulf of Suez, but it is also applicable to some parts of the North Sea (which is why StatoilHydro and ConocoPhillips have been involved)."
The author's response suggests the image sheds light on the timing of development of trapping seals, not on whether oil is present.
But as the side-bar of this website demonstrates, oil and tectonic rifts go hand-in-hand.
And "bulges' reflect some "unknown" increase of stress or pressure in the geologic formation.
Could it be that this image detects deformations that could be the result of increased stress and pressure from oil deposits near tectonic rifts?
It seems quite possible.
Abiotic Oil theory would account for anomalous bulges in tectonic rift systems.
Where "fossil" theory does not.
Quantum_Flux:
Here is the story that explains your link to other readers:
Science News, October 22, 2008, Magic Tape, "Even the lowliest kind of sticky tape can leave physicists befuddled. Unrolling tape in a vacuum produces X-rays — enough of them to do X-ray imaging, researchers have found. No current theory can explain such intensity of X-ray emissions, the scientists write in the Oct. 23 Nature."
Further,
"Unrolling anything from regular sticky tape to duct tape produces a glow that, although faint, is easy to see in a completely dark room. The fact that X-rays, which are thousands of times more energetic than ordinary visible-light photons, can also be produced was first hinted at in a 1953 Russian experiment but seems to have been little-known."
Maybe those Russians know something after all...
And may I be so bold to suggest this maybe another example of Plasma Universe theory here on Earth.
How so?
In a vacuum, the combination of Earth's ever present electromagnetic field (signifying electric current is present) and the stress of "pulling apart" the adhesion tape acts to free the x-rays.
There is so much that Man does not know about Nature!
But that Man can find out if he uses his reason!
The Earth's magnetic field has nothing to do with the X-rays produced by unravelling the scotch tape. It comes only from the ionization energies produced by breaking the bonds of chemical adhesion in a vacuum, and the resulting charge that builds on the tape.
Quantum_Flux:
In science its important to "think things through."
Let's look at the article.
The following quote sketches the scientist's basic understanding of the possible mechanics involved:
"Peeling tape leaves some electrons behind, Camara explains, so that the surface of what the tape was sticking to becomes negatively charged. The peeled-off tape, meanwhile, becomes positively charged due to a deficit of electrons. The electrostatic attraction of opposite charges makes electrons leap from the surface to the tape."
But the scientists acknowledge their limited understanding:
"Each burst contained up to 100,000 X-ray photons. The researchers expected to detect some X-rays, but not that many, Camara says. 'No current theory predicts that there will be as many charges as are required for our observation.'"
"'No current theory predicts..."
Quantum_Flux, you didn't think through your comment.
In your haste to disagree with my analysis, you forget that electrical current facilitates electrons being stripped from atoms, creating free electrons and ions. Exactly as described in this article. Thus, more electrons are "freed" and the electrons absorb more energy causing the increased incidence of x-rays.
X-ray release is dependent on the number of electrons released and the energy level of those electrons.
In the vacuum, as the scientists report, there is less interference from atoms in the air. Perhaps, also the electrical current and electromagnetic field is less disrupted so can provide more energy for the discharge process.
But here is the way to falsify my idea: Conduct the same experiment, but in an area shielded from electromagnetic fields and thus electrical current.
If the experiment has the same result in the absence of an electromagnetic field then my hypothsis has been falsified.
Until then, you have no basis for your quick dismissal of my idea.
Qunatum_Flux, think things through, after all, reason in your only recourse.
The Earth's Magnetic field is very weak. They could use a variable strength electromagnet and easily see if changing the magnetic field has any effect on the X-ray production. I assumed they already tried this experiment, but I haven't seen it explicitly stated anywhere, so perhaps you're correct.
Quantum_Flux:
That's the great thing about laboratory experiments. It's much easier to falsify a theory in the laboratory than in the field.
Perhaps that's why controversy in geology exists; it's harder to falsify one theory or another based only on field work.
And while electromagnetic fields don't always "jump out" at us, they are still many, many times stronger that the force of gravity.
They are strong enough to make all our wonderful gadgets work.
Yeah, I think the Earth's magnetic field is not a factor at all in that experiment.
What happens is charge builds up from the unwrapping tape, and then shoots across the vaccuum to the scintelator (sic) or to the edges of the container. The charge builds up and releases so fast from the bonds broken from the tape adhesive that high frequency production of X-rays occurs. In a higher pressure situation the charge wouldn't build up so great since the conductivity of the air is greater. The Van De Graff generator does the exact same thing except much less presicely and the efficiency is much less too.
Quantum_Flux:
All well and good...except that the scientists say there is some "unknown" factor. Your recitation simply repeats what the scientists said in the story.
My hypothesis actually provides the "unknown" factor.
My bet is that the unkowns are probably the Bessel Resonances (electron acceleration the deceleration) or the electrical discharge distances between the tape and the cylinder which are responsible for the X-ray production. If they could optimize those discharge distances by changing either the cylindrical shape or the shape of the tape reels, then they could gain even higher x-ray release efficiencies.
Quantum_Flux:
Check out these two stories, here and here.
Want to reconsider?
No reconsidering required, but interesting links though. I hadn't realized such events occured between the sun and the Earth
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