Seven most destructive earthquakes have occurred in the past 100-plus years (since 1900) claimed the lives of 1 million 713 thousand people. Seismologists still do not know how to predict the approach of terrible tectonic shocks. An illustrative example of the recent earthquake Nepal 2015, which killed about 9,000 people, including several teams of climbers climb Everest. But the most paradoxical that just five years ago, Russian scientists have found a way that prevents such disaster. Though not quite understand that this precious knowledge to do …
Say “Thank you!” Cold War
The essence of the discovery is simple, as all Brilliant. The researchers analyzed a database of underground nuclear explosions, which were carried out of the USSR and the USA, and compared these data with information about major earthquakes in the period from 1900 to 2008. It was found that between 1957 and 1992 (at this time the nuclear powers conducted tests) major earthquakes, with a magnitude of more than 8.3 points was not! Means nuclear weapons designed to destroy humanity, ironically for 25 years protects the planet from global natural disasters?!
We have contacted one of the authors of the sensational investigation Doctor of Physical and Mathematical Sciences Yevgeny Polyachenko , he is an employee of the Department of nonlinear dynamic processes in astrophysics and geophysics MIPT.
– Evgeny V., can you explain to our readers how to relate these mechanisms: underground nuclear explosions and earthquakes?
– Very simple. Nuclear explosions relieve tension in the crust. Why devastating tremors occur? Because lithospheric plates creeps on each other. At some point the plate can not withstand enormous pressure and breaks. There is an earthquake. A nuclear explosion shakes the plate and slightly relieves stress. At the point of contact layers is no such colossal energy reserve to jolt the present. Earthquakes happen, but not as strong.
– Look, it’s a sensation! As the scientific community has apprehended your idea?
– To be honest, a great response she got. With friends discussing they acknowledged yes, an interesting observation. But the scientific world is probably digesting this information.
– Since the publication of been 5 years. During this time, you have found new evidence of his innocence?
– I do not engaged in the topic.
– Why? It is possible to save millions of people?
– You know, with this discovery interesting situation occurred. We were three co-sponsors. The first – is Academician Alexei Fridman. Initially the research topic was different: he had an idea to find a connection between the change in the Earth’s rotation and earthquakes. I am engaged in applied mathematics in astrophysics. Seismic phenomena is not my topic. But we Gorky did some articles for Western magazines, and this time he also asked me to help with the calculations. We started to count and it turned out that the idea of Friedman was not justified: there was no apparent effect.
– A nuclear explosion?
– It happened by accident. Gorky already seriously ill, was preparing the publication of mainly me. And he remembered that Friedman discussed this issue and said that could be a link between nuclear explosions and earthquakes. I decided to test this hypothesis. Database is in the public domain, based on them I made a graph. It shows that if you do an underground nuclear explosions, then the probability of large earthquakes decreases. But it turned out that this schedule was in the side of the main research topics. We did not know what to do and just marked it as an interesting fact. And then … the same year Gorky died. I returned to my astrophysics.
– A third co-author?
– It was our student. He later defended his diploma while just on the topic – “nuclear test and an earthquake”, but after the release of MIPT, I lost track of him.
explode or not explode?
– But do you not take your breath away to think about the prospects for the practical application of this idea?
– blasting that was not powerful Earthquakes? You know, an earthquake of 7-8 points are too powerful. The degree of damage depends not on the absolute magnitude of the earthquake, and how close to the epicenter is located in the village. Tashkent earthquake of 1966 there was a powerful, magnitude was 5.2 points. But due to the fact that the focus was at a depth of only 3-8 km away half the town went under the ground.
– turns out it is necessary to blow up near the cities?
– And then the question arises: which of the options scarier? The earthquake that could theoretically destroy a city or a nuclear explosion in the neighborhood. I think this is too big a price.
– a paradoxical situation: we have a unique knowledge of the hands, but do not understand how to apply it?
– This is found in science all the time. To begin with we just noted an interesting fact. Well, that humanity from nuclear explosions was at least some benefit. Perhaps, over time, people will learn to make a safe, controlled explosions to a city is not shaking. But I do not know how to do it.
FROM FILE “KP»
The members of the nuclear club in 2000 detonated atomic bombs
The first nuclear test conducted USA July 16, 1945 in the state of New Mexico. The Soviet Union detonated its first nuclear bomb August 29, 1949. First, nuclear weapons powers were tested in different areas: in the air, in space, underwater and underground. After 1963 came into force an agreement on the limitation of tests in three environments, the Soviet Union and the United States were limited of underground explosions.
The average cost of an underground nuclear test in the vertical shaft is 20-30 million dollars. The blast warhead in a horizontal shaft-tunnel is more expensive – 40-70 million (at 1988 prices).
The Soviet Union was the first declared a unilateral moratorium on nuclear testing. The last underground nuclear explosion, our country has made in 1990. Two years later, the United States stopped producing nuclear weapons testing.
Today, the nuclear tests carried out, only India, Pakistan and North Korea.
all nuclear powers was conducted more than two thousand nuclear explosions. The bulk of the testing took place in the period from 1957 to 1992.
MOST MODERN terrible earthquake
No comments:
Post a Comment