Author: aaronyam89

Humans have come a long way in discovering more about our Earth with each passing year. In the last few decades, we have been able to more clearly visualize how our Earth’s core is like. Recently, studies from Yale University and Rutgers University has uncovered a peculiar finding about what lies below our feet. It was discovered that in a region that is not known for earthquakes, volcanoes or vast mountains, there may be evidence suggesting that the region is slowly transforming. It was found that there are warm rocks in the less dense regions and slower seismic waves passing through it. “They also observed wave patterns that suggest deformations in the rock itself” (Blakemore). Under normal conditions, tectonic plate movement should leave skid marks, but since this region is undergoing change, those skid marks were erased because of the upward moving rocks. Our Earth is becoming more and more difficult to predict because of many factors. We are entering new territories because data collected in the past show patterns that we are no longer following.

Despite these changing conditions under New England, citizens should not fret. These changes are fairly recent and will occur over an extended period of time. Study co-author Vadim Levin says “Maybe it didn’t have time yet, or maybe it is too small and will never make it. Come back in 50 million years, and we’ll see what happens”. Geological changes occur over millions of years. In terms of geological time, humans have not lived that long on Earth. It will be a long time before we can see significant geological changes. For the longest time, New England has been known to be an area of little geological change, but after this finding, we know that New England’s “subsurface is anything but stagnant”. (Blakemore). At least this finding opens up our perspective of our own planet. It is still and always be undergoing change.

Sources:
https://news.nationalgeographic.com/2017/12/magma-bubble-rising-under-new-england-volcanoes-science/              (Erin Blakemore)

California has been suffering from a prolonged drought for the past 5 years. The state of California was in a drought emergency for a long time and heavy restrictions have been placed under water usage to reduce the impact of the drought on daily life. A drought is defined as a period of drier than normal conditions with less than average rainfall. It is wise to watch water consumption during times of drought because it plays a pivotal role between running out of water and rationing it well enough to get by the drought period. When California was hit with the drought initially, it was expected that the economy would dip because of it. Typically, droughts can hold back agriculture because of the lack of water. However, even with some rural areas getting water delivered to, agriculture had record revenue in 2012-2014. The drought went as far as to the state of California limiting when people could water their lawns. It went to the extent in which California natives began to swap their plants for more drought resistant ones.  Luckily, it seems like California is almost out of the woods. The state of emergency is going to be lifted because due to the recent storms, big reservoirs began to fill again.

Although California is about to be freed from the grips of the drought, it can come back at any time. They still have to be cautious about how they use their water. The ban on wasteful water usage is still in play such as watering your yard when it is raining or hosing down your driveway. Every major drought has been a learning point for California and every state and country should take note from it. Water is an extremely important natural resource and we can’t be using it so wastefully. Conservative use of water should be the new way of life and it is a relief that some states are taking it up a notch to enforce that. Governor Jerry Brown said it himself “Conservation must remain a way of life”. If we can continue living that way, constantly reducing waste, the effects of droughts can be dramatically reduced.

Sources:
http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-brown-drought-20170407-story.html (Bettina Boxall)

The giant sequoias of California are known for their resilience and large stature. They have a sort of resilience that sets them apart from regular trees in that they can resist the usual forces that kill off other trees when they reach maturity. These sequoias however are found in small quantities scattered across the Sierra Nevada forest. Approximately 70 groves across 55 square miles on the western slopes of Sierra Nevada. Although these sequoias are a marvel to look at, they’re slowly withering due to the severe drought conditions in recent years. California has been in an on-going battle with drought and it is widely affecting these sequoias. It has been observed that a small number of these sequoias were dying because of the drier climate conditions. Normally in shortage of water, these sequoias use water found just below the surface as a reserve. However, because of the droughts, these reserves have not been able to properly replenish. On top of this, the sequoias have been observed to have more greenness which may indicate higher forest biomass. This entails that there is likely to be an increase of water consumption. If drought conditions in California continue at this rate, we can expect to see a higher number of these sequoias slowly meeting their ends.

What can we take away from this natural phenomena? Well this should be a serious warning to us that we’re treading into new territory in terms of climate change. If sequoias are known to be resilient to the typical forces that kill off trees and all of a sudden they’re slowly succumbing to those very sources, it could possibly mean that we are entering extreme climate conditions. Conditions that some species are not adapted for. Although we have little to no control over how droughts can impact these sequoias, we can start looking at how it can affect our population. Especially in California. When these drought patterns became more apparent, the state of California imposed stricter laws on water consumption. They were able to cut back on roughly 20% of their water usage. Although they have lessened the effects of a drought, they are still very vulnerable to going back to where they were. We have to be more cautious about what we do and how it can potentially effect the environment around us because in the end, we’re inhabitants of the same environment that we are causing harm to.

Sources: http://goldrushcam.com/sierrasuntimes/index.php/news/local-news/11848-new-study-finds-climate-change-drought-threaten-giant-sequoias

https://www.nps.gov/seki/planyourvisit/sequoiagroves.htm

On September 2017, Mexico City was hit with a massive earthquake, one with magnitude not seen since 1985. It is already known that Mexico is in a earthquake hot-spot zone because it is near a subduction zone where tectonic plates are constantly colliding and rubbing off on each other. However, there is an underlying reason that explains much of this distress. It has been revealed that Mexico City is actually lying on top of an ancient lake bed. Because Mexico City is on top of a lake bed, when an earthquake occurs, the effects are more violent than if an earthquake occurred near a land mass. Where there is unstable land, there leads to buildings toppling over and or the submerging of buildings at the time of an earthquake. The reason for this is because with solid land, the elasticity of the bedrock is less likely to bend out of control in comparison to sand/dirt. Sand and dirt does not stay in place when a wave travels through it. It shifts around and can even sink. Mexico City is currently standing over layers of clay and sand. This can potentially mean that the capital of Mexico is not in a very stable space if another earthquake is to happen again. No matter how many precautions they take, how many earthquake-proof buildings they erect, it could be all in vain.  The way that the material is arranged below Mexico City makes earthquakes even deadlier because one, “the looser sediments near the surface cause shock waves to slow down from about one and a half miles per second to about 150 feet per second as they enter the valley” (Watkins and White). As earthquake waves slow down, the amplitude of the wave increases to retain the property of a wave. With greater amplitude means more violent quakes. Additionally, “the denser, deeper material below the looser sediments causes waves to linger in the valley, making the amplified shaking last longer” (Watkins and White). Mexico City is in one of the worst spots to be in when an earthquake runs through the area.

So what does this mean for Mexico City? For starters, they can expect for more earthquakes to occur in the future because with out still-traditional methods of getting energy, we are still heavily dependent on fossil fuels. However, since most of it has been tapped out, extracting fossil fuels isn’t as easy as it was years ago. Now a days, people use fracking to extract these fuels from the Earth. However, fracking has a range of negative impacts on our Earth, one particularly because it plays a role in inducing more earthquakes. With the BP oil drilling incident in April 20, 2010, it is apparent that we are not moving away from fossil fuels. Turning to alternative energy sources may be a start to dealing with these earthquake issues. However, this still does not change the fact that Mexico City is on top of an ancient lake bed. Additionally, all of Mexico is an earthquake hot-spot. A possible solution would be to move away from grounded-housing and to build houses that are dynamic, able to move on the spot. There have been ideas of creating artificial islands that are capable of supporting life and moving around, but this is still far from implementable. Further research will need to be done.

Source:
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2017/09/22/world/americas/mexico-city-earthquake-lake-bed-geology.html (Derek Watkins and Jeremy White)

Earthquakes are one of the most deadliest natural disasters not only because of the destruction it is capable of bringing, but also because of what it causes. Earthquakes can cause tsunamis because of its disruption of water. When an earthquake occurs near fault lines or the ocean floor, the tectonic plates can rub against each other and displace the ocean floor by several kilometers. When there is a disruption this great, the water surface can shift. When the water begins to move, this wave is the start of the tsunami. These waves span great distances, but with a small amplitude. When these waves reach the shore, that is when the tsunami builds up. The tsunami front hits the shore, and because of friction, it is slowed down. However, the back of the tsunami is still moving in. Since the wave has decreased, the amplitude is increased to preserve the conservation of energy. Since Mexico is near a subduction zone, earthquakes near Mexico typically can cause a tsunami because the earthquake is occurring near a fault line. Japan is went through a similar situation back in 2011 where shortly after an earthquake, Japan faced a huge tsunami. The two of these disasters combined completely ravaged Japan and left it in shambles. Mexico is now going through what Japan went through. It was said that “The US Geological Survey recorded at least 20 aftershocks of magnitude 4.0 or greater within about five hours after the main shake, and Peña Nieto warned that an aftershock as large as magnitude 7.2 could occur” (Steinbuch). So residents of Mexico are not only facing the initial earthquake, but several aftershocks after as well. To worsen the situation, officials have observed tsunami waves of roughly a meter high on some coastal regions and some smaller tsunami waves elsewhere. Mexico has taken so much and lost just as much in such a short period of time with casualties in the thousands and a few confirmed deceased.

This recent natural disaster has crippled many residents of services such as electricity and that number has been in the millions. Only as of recently, power has been restored to about 4/5 that number. Buildings have fallen and people have been left homeless. The problems are only multiplying. It has been reported that at the time of the earthquake, many residents fled to the streets in just their pajamas or wrapped in a blanket as they observed the phenomenon in fear. This earthquake has not only physical effects on the environment, but also mental effects on the victims. The damages last considerably longer than the actual event. As Mexico is slowly rebuilding from these concussive blows, in which direction should they head for? How can they lessen the damages if there is another case like this? These are potential topics for the politicians to discuss in coming meetings because natural disasters like this are extremely unpredictable as we have seen. But this doesn’t just apply to Mexico, but for every one. Chicago for example was hit by a small tsunami. One might think that Chicago is inland and not close to any tectonic plates. That just goes to show that we are losing our ability to predict the Earth and its behaviors because now it is becoming more and more unpredictable due to environmental changes.

Sources:
http://nypost.com/2017/09/08/major-earthquake-strikes-off-coast-of-mexico-tsunami-warning-issued/ (Yaron Steinbuch)
http://itic.ioc-unesco.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1158&Itemid=2026

Earthquakes are one of the most deadliest natural disasters and is a natural phenomenon that we have little control over. Earthquakes can cause massive damage in a large area, and if there is a densely populated region near an earthquake, there is guaranteed to be trouble. Earthquakes are capable of causing enormous economic difficulties as it can trash an area completely. Recently, we had an earthquake of magnitude 8.1 occur in Mexico. A magnitude of 8.1 is extremely intense and Mexico had one not too long ago in 1985. Why is Mexico being hit with earthquakes so frequently? In Matt Steven’s NY Times article he says, “Mexico’s location makes the country prone to strong earthquakes because it is in a so-called subduction zone.” Unfortunately, countries that are located near subduction zones are hit with earthquakes of huge magnitudes. Countries located near the subduction zones are faced with many earthquakes because it is located near two tectonic plates. When the two plates collide, earthquakes are released. This is caused by the gradual friction being built up between tectonic plates. Overtime, the strain becomes too great that the plates snap and all the built-up energy from the movement of the plates is what causes such an earthquake. “The subduction zone responsible for the two recent quakes runs along the western coast of Central America, from Central Mexico to Panama, said Gavin Hayes, a research geophysicist with the United States Geological Survey. Other subduction zones are found across the globe — and experts say they are responsible for the world’s most powerful earthquakes.” (Stevens). So even if we know about earthquakes, what can we do to lessen the damage costs? Obviously we can’t control the earthquake from happening, but there are measures that we can take to reduce the effects of it.

One such measure is to implement new structural design to new buildings and old buildings alike. If we can make our structures in our vicinity earthquake proof, this is one way in which we can lessen the property damage an earthquake can cause. One example of this earthquake proofing is Mexico’s Torre Reforma. This building was designed to stand for more than 2500 years. With its unique design, it is capable of withstanding earthquakes of magnitudes around 8.5. However, “Materiality was a key component of the design process for the tower.” (Sayer). The costs of constructing this building is very expensive. This could be a potential reason as to why many countries have not implemented this feature in buildings yet. Countries that do not lie near subduction zone may be complacent with where they are now and assume that earthquakes will not hit them. We should not be thinking like this especially with all the fracking that we do. With all of the fracking that we have been doing in the last century alone, it is enough to cause a shift in how earthquakes are forming around the world. We have physically changed the way the plates are moving in a number of ways, fracking being one of them. Another one would be building artificial land in places that were supposed to be water. When we building artificial land or dams, we are changing the amount of weight at a particular region. That weight may or may not be significant enough to cause shifts in the tectonic plates, but it is something that we should be mindful of in our future activities. Because we are inhabitants of this Earth, we should be wary about its impact on us as well as our impact on it.

Sources:
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/20/world/americas/mexico-earthquakes-explainer.html (Matt Stevens)
https://archpaper.com/2016/07/torre-reforma-arup-mexico-city/#gallery-0-slide-0 (Jason Sayer)

-Aaron Y.