jupitersterrain four

Today's scientists understand earthquakes a lot better than we did even 50 years ago, but they still can't match the quake-predicting prowess of the common toad (Bufo bufo), which can detect seismic activity days in advance of a quake. 96 percent of male toads in a population abandoned their breeding site five days before the earthquake . Researchers aren't quite sure how the toads do this, but it's believed that they can detect subtle signs, such as the release of gases and charged particles, that may occur before a quake

As a result, most earthquake predictions are vague at best. Scientists have had more success predicting aftershocks, additional quakes following an initial earthquake

Another area of study is the relationship between magnetic and electrical charges in rock material and earthquakes. Some scientists have hypothesized that these electromagnetic fields change in a certain way just before an earthquake. Seismologists are also studying gases and the tilting of the ground as warning signs of earthquakes




3.42am 13.11.12.