It isn’t just the interior of the Earth that’s causing the planet to shake. Just as magma, volcanos, and tectonic plates cause shivers so do winds and the ocean waves. But we do it too. Our activities are causing seismic noise. Traffic, heavy machinery used by so many industries, and even out daily activities are contributing to Earth’s daily shivers.
And it seems like what for us feels like the end of the world as we know it, Earth experiences differently this imposed hibernation-like measure with concerns to coronavirus pandemic. For Earth, this feels just like Christmas does, or even better, as Thomas Lecocq put it. He is a seismologist at the Royal Observatory of Belgium in Brussels, and he stated that the noise decrease is even lower than registered during Christmas.
Seismic Noise Drop Due to the COVID-19 Lockdown
And Belgium isn’t the only country registering the relief of seismic noise. All over the world, seismology stations have registered the dame phenomenon, according to ExpressUK.
Seismometers at Los Angeles, New York, London, Paris, and Auckland, New Zeeland, all measure the same unprecedented decrease in Earth’s artificial vibration due to the traffic interdictions.
Scientists at the British Geological Society on London, the Royal Observatory in Brussels, the Incorporated Research Institutions for Seismology in Washington DC they all agree on the matter: the lockdown is changing the planet’s vibration. Journalists from Mail Online confirm that Paris and Auckland are on the same spot.
Just like environmentalists are enjoying the enhancement of the air we breathe with the lowering levels of carbon dioxide, nitrogen dioxide, and particulates, so do seismologists. It is a good outcome, one that could never be obtained in any other circumstances other than this world health crisis. This drop of the seismic noise can help a lot with seismometers catching an earthquake early sign. It is hard for a seismometer to do that when everything is already shaking.