Study: Some weather events, such as heavy snowfall and rain, may lead to earthquakes

Earthquakes are caused by sudden movement along faults within the Earth, but new research by MIT scientists suggests that heavy snowfall and rain could play a role in causing the tremors.

The study, published on Wednesday (May 8) in the journal Science Advances, suggests a possible link between heavy snowfall on Japan's Noto Peninsula and thousands of earthquakes measured there since late 2020.

“We see that snowfall and other environmental loading at the surface affects the state of underground stress, and when it occurs,” said William Frank, study author and assistant professor in MIT's Department of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences (EAPS). “Heavy rainfall events are closely linked to the onset of an earthquake swarm.”

“So, climate clearly has an impact on the response of solid Earth, and part of that response is earthquakes,” he added.

On January 1 of this year, the west coast of Japan was hit by a massive 7.6 magnitude earthquake near the Noto Peninsula in Ishikawa Prefecture. This was the strongest earthquake to hit the region in more than a century. The earthquake killed 213 people and left 26,000 in emergency shelters.

Satellite images later revealed that the powerful earthquake had shifted the coastline by 800 kilometres. Since the initial quake, the Noto Peninsula, located about 190 miles northwest of Tokyo on the Sea of ​​Japan, has experienced nearly 600 aftershocks.

Hundreds of small earthquakes have rocked the Noto Peninsula since late 2020. Researchers analyzed thousands of earthquakes that have struck the peninsula. It was found that the number of earthquakes in the region increased significantly, with hundreds of them recorded daily, after significant snowfall in 2021.

In the latest study, the researchers focused on a series of earthquakes on the Noto Peninsula. The results revealed that seismic activity in the region is unexpectedly linked to changes in subsurface pressure, which are controlled by seasonal patterns of snowfall and rain.

The researchers believe that this new link between earthquakes and climate may not be limited to Japan only, and they also believe that the influence of climate on earthquakes could be greater with global warming and rising temperatures.

Frank added: “If we are heading towards a changing climate, with more extreme rainfall, and we expect a redistribution of water in the atmosphere, oceans and continents, that will change how the Earth's crust is loaded. That will certainly have an impact, and it's a link we can explore further.”

(With inputs from agencies)

Srishti Singh Sisodia

Srishti Singh Sisodia is a digital journalist at WION and mainly writes about global politics. She is a die-hard FC Barcelona fan. She follows and loves international sports

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