The "weird and beautiful photos of the sky" before the Taiwan earthquake sparked heated discussions! Are there really "earthquake clouds"?

According to official measurements by the China Earthquake Networks Center, a magnitude 7.3 earthquake occurred in the sea area of ​​Hualien County, Taiwan (23.81 degrees north latitude, 121.74 degrees east longitude) at 7:58 am Beijing time on April 3, with a focal depth of 12 kilometers.

According to media reports, a netizen shared a "weird and beautiful photo of the sky" on social media yesterday. The sky was orange, pink, purple, blue and dark blue, and the layers looked magical. The relevant photos sparked discussion among netizens yesterday, and one person left a message saying "It smells like the evening before the 921 earthquake, so be careful." After the earthquake, this "prophecy post" once again sparked heated discussions among netizens.

Serious earthquake disasters have occurred in my country's history. The destruction of homes and the loss of lives have become indelible pains in the hearts of countless people. In the face of earthquakes, humans appear small and fragile, so when talking about earthquakes, most people will feel fear in their hearts, and there are many different opinions about earthquakes.

In addition to the saying that "earthquake clouds will form in the sky before an earthquake to predict the earthquake", rumors such as "earthquake warning can be one hour in advance" and "the earth's magnetic field changes before and after an earthquake, so magnets can predict earthquakes" are also common. So are these claims correct? Let's find out the truth together.

Rumor 1

Rumor : Before an earthquake, an "earthquake cloud" will form in the sky to predict the earthquake.

Rumor content : Before an earthquake, "radioactive clouds", "rib clouds", "fish scale clouds", etc. will form in the sky, as well as cotton-like clouds, which means that an earthquake will occur.

Analysis : In fact, there is no "earthquake cloud" at all, and the "earthquake cloud theory" has never been accepted by the mainstream scientific community. The seemingly strange "radiation cloud", "rib cloud" and "fish scale cloud" are just a few common clouds, and they all have reasonable scientific explanations in meteorology. They just happened to appear before an earthquake, and they are not "earthquake clouds" that can predict earthquakes. The China Meteorological Administration has also stated that there is no sufficient evidence to prove that there is an intrinsic correlation between earthquakes and weather.

Rumor 2

Rumor : Li Siguang predicted four earthquakes, three of which occurred.

Rumor content : In recent years, "In the early days of the People's Republic of China, Li Siguang predicted that there would be four major earthquakes in China within 60 years..." This rumor has been widely circulated, and there are N versions of the four earthquake locations on the Internet.

Analysis : Earthquake prediction is a difficult problem all over the world and is still in the exploratory stage. Li Siguang is a famous scientist in China. His greatest contribution is the creation of geological mechanics and his immortal contributions to China's petroleum industry. The rumor that Li Siguang predicted the four major earthquakes has been circulating for a long time. After multiple investigations, it was found that Li Siguang never made such a prediction during his lifetime. It is purely a rumor. The China Earthquake Networks Express Weibo has also refuted this rumor more than once.

Rumor 3

Rumor: “Earthquake warning” can be provided one hour in advance.

Rumor content: “Earthquake warning” can be given one hour in advance.

Analysis: "Earthquake early warning" cannot be provided one hour in advance. "Earthquake early warning" means that after a major earthquake occurs, earthquake monitoring stations near the earthquake site detect the earthquake and immediately issue an alarm, so that people far from the epicenter can take shelter and escape before the destructive earthquake waves arrive. At present, earthquake early warning can be provided for more than ten seconds or even dozens of seconds in advance. The closer to the epicenter, the shorter the time for early warning, and vice versa, the longer the time for early warning, but the significance is also weakened. In addition, because earthquake early warning seeks to be "fast", the judgment of information such as the size and source of the earthquake may not be completely accurate.

Rumor 4

Rumor : An "X-magnitude" earthquake is about to occur in a certain place at a certain time.

Rumor content : Once an earthquake occurs, a lot of news about "an earthquake is about to occur in a certain place at a certain time" will appear on the Internet, causing panic among local residents.

Analysis : According to the current actual level of earthquake prediction, it is difficult to make very accurate predictions of earthquake time, space, and intensity. The so-called accurate "earthquake prediction" is not credible. It is also an earthquake rumor that has appeared repeatedly in various places for many years, but it has only been replaced with local place names. It is necessary to remind everyone that only the government has the right to issue earthquake forecasts, and no other department, unit or individual has the right to issue earthquake forecasts. Therefore, do not believe in any unofficial information related to earthquakes, and do not spread rumors to prevent rumors from causing secondary damage.

Myth 5

Myth : Road cracks are caused by earthquakes.

Rumor content : Someone saw the road surface cracking and took a video and uploaded it, saying that the earthquake caused the road surface cracking.

Analysis : Ground fissures are not all caused by earthquakes. Ground fissures are the phenomenon that the surface rock and soil crack under the influence of natural and human factors, and form cracks of a certain length and width on the ground. Their scales, shapes and causes are different.

One is the tectonic ground fissures that occur with earthquakes and volcanoes; the other is the ground fissures that occur in a relatively small area with collapse, landslides, ground subsidence, freeze-thaw and human activities. In addition, some special rock and soil, such as expansive soil and collapsible soil, will also crack due to changes in water content.

Serious ground fissure disasters have occurred in many areas of China. If you encounter such a situation, you should obtain information from the authorities and not spread rumors out of blind panic, which may even violate the law.

Rumor 6

Myth : The Earth's magnetic field changes before and after an earthquake, so magnets can predict earthquakes.

Rumor : Magnets can predict earthquakes because the Earth's magnetic field in a certain area will change before and after an earthquake. This "magnet prediction earthquake method" claims to use a magnet to hold an iron block and hang it in your home. When an earthquake occurs, the Earth's magnetic field changes dramatically, causing the magnet to lose its magnetism and the iron block to fall.

Analysis : First of all, we need to make it clear that magnets have nothing to do with the earth's magnetic field. In fact, the earth's magnetic field itself is very weak, and its strength is only about one ten-thousandth of the magnetic field strength of a 2-cm-long calibrated magnetic needle. Before and after an earthquake, the earth's magnetic field may change to a certain extent. But the amount of change is very small, even less than one thousandth of the total amount of the earth's magnetic field. Even some professional instruments may not be able to detect it, let alone make a magnet lose its magnetism and fall. So there is no need to buy the so-called "prediction magnet" in order to "predict earthquakes."

in conclusion

There is no such thing as "earthquake cloud" at all, and there is no sufficient fact to prove the intrinsic correlation between earthquakes and weather; Li Siguang never predicted four major earthquakes during his lifetime, which is pure rumor; currently earthquake warning can be achieved within ten seconds or even dozens of seconds in advance, but it is impossible to give a warning one hour in advance; the so-called precise "earthquake prediction" is not credible, and the actual level of earthquake prediction today makes it difficult to make very accurate predictions of the time, space and intensity of earthquakes; ground fissures are not all caused by earthquakes; magnets have nothing to do with the earth's magnetic field, and there is no need to buy so-called "prediction magnets" in order to "predict earthquakes."

Planning and production

Audit丨

He Yongnian, former deputy director and researcher of China Earthquake Administration

Shen Ping, Researcher at the Institute of Geophysics, China Earthquake Administration

Zou Wenwei, Deputy Secretary General of China Disaster Prevention Association

Jiang Haikun, researcher at China Earthquake Networks Center

Jiang Changsheng, Researcher, Institute of Geophysics, China Earthquake Administration

(Ranking in no particular order)

Editor: Zhong Yanping

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