What is the largest earthquake in California?
Regional SpecificsCalifornia’s Biggest Shakers: Remembering the Earthquakes that Shaped the Golden State Okay, let’s talk earthquakes. California and earthquakes go together like peanut butter and jelly, right? Living here, you know it’s not a matter of if another big one hits, but when. We’ve had a few real monsters in our history, but two stand out
Why do some geoscientists refer to focal mechanisms as beach balls?
Regional SpecificsDecoding Earth’s Tremors: Why Geoscientists Call Focal Mechanisms “Beach Balls” Ever wonder how scientists figure out what’s happening deep beneath our feet when an earthquake strikes? Well, seismologists have a whole toolkit, and one of their coolest tools is the focal mechanism. It’s a graphical representation that they often call a “beach ball” – yeah,
How long did the last Ice Age last and when did it end?
Regional SpecificsThe Last Ice Age: When Did It End, and How Long Did It Really Last? “Ice Age” – the very words probably conjure up images of woolly mammoths, vast glaciers, and a world perpetually stuck in winter. But the reality is far more nuanced than that Hollywood depiction. When we talk about the last Ice
How do mudslides affect the earth?
Geology & LandformWhen the Earth Moves: Getting Real About the Mess Mudslides Make Stripped Bare: The Soil’s Sorry State One of the biggest problems? All that precious topsoil gets washed away i. You know, the good stuff that plants need to grow. When a mudslide tears through, it’s like nature’s bulldozer, scraping everything down to bare rock
How Richter scale is used to measure earthquakes?
Natural EnvironmentsDecoding Earthquakes: Making Sense of the Richter Scale Ever felt the earth move beneath your feet? When an earthquake hits, the Richter scale is usually the first thing people think about. Back in 1935, a couple of smart guys, Charles F. Richter and Beno Gutenberg, cooked up this scale to give us a way to
What is the least understood era of Earth history?
Regional SpecificsEarth’s Infancy: Cracking the Code of the Hadean Eon Ever wonder about the Earth’s awkward teenage years? Well, before that, there was its infancy – the Hadean Eon. Spanning from Earth’s fiery birth about 4.56 billion years ago to around 4 billion years ago, it’s easily the most mysterious chapter in our planet’s biography. We’re