Nasa JUST ANNOUNCED The San Andreas Fault Is About To Cause California's DEADLIEST Earthquake!

[Music] [Music] Earth our home for millions of years is in constant motion with its crustal plates gradually shifting over its surface these slow but inexorable movements of tectonic plates have shaped our planet's geography and continue to do so today however beneath the Serene facade of our everyday lives there exists a lurking danger that scientists have been closely monitoring the San Andrea's fault in California the this geological feature has been a source of Fascination and Dread for decades as it has the potential to unleash catastrophic earthquakes capable of causing immense destruction and loss of life why are the scientists concerned let's find out the San Andreas fault the San Andreas fault is no ordinary fault line it's the most renowned and significant one in California's intricate fault system stretching almost 800 m in total and extending at least 10 Mi below the Earth's surface this fault is a complex zone of crushed and shattered Rock the width of this fault varies ranging from a few hundred ft to a mile and it's riddled with numerous minor faults that Branch off and connect to it one distinctive feature of the San Andreas fault is its continuous narrow split in the Earth's crust extending from Northern California Southward to kahon pass in San Bernardino the movement along this fault particularly southeastward from coone pass is shared by several branching faults this northeasternmost branch is commonly referred to as the San Andreas fault and it plays a central role in the Region's geological activity although the San Andreas fault is a prominent geological feature it's not always readily visible to the untrained eye its linear depression which includes Lakes bays and valleys can be observed from above but these characteristics are more subdued when viewed from the ground many individuals may unknowingly Traverse the San Andreas faults without even realizing it however careful examination of the terrain can reveal its presence unusual landforms offer subtle clues that one is in the vicinity of the fault long straight escarpments narrow ridges and shallow undrained ponds formed by the settling of small blocks within the fault Zone serve as markers one distinct characteristic is the shifting of objects during the 1906 earthquake in the San Francisco region these features were displaced by several yards with the road at the head of tamal's bay experiencing the largest displacement of about 21 ft earthquake risk the San Andrea's fault like other faults experiences a combination of slow and abrupt movements one section of the fault is affected at a time by an Abrupt offset resulting in a large earthquake over time this total offset increases unevenly often due to movement on one segment before transferring to another The Strain accumulates over hundreds or thousands of years and when it's finally released it results in catastrophic earthquakes however some of the of the faults exhibit slow creep instead of abrupt offsets that trigger powerful earthquakes earthquakes in these creeping sections are typically less intense and do not originate from the locked portions of the fault geologists estimate that the San Andreas fault has moved at least 350 mies since its formation which dates back 15 to 20 million years this movement is a result of a combination of earthquakes and creep to put this into perspective studies of a section of the fault between tahon pass and the salt in Sea have revealed geologically identical terrains on either side of the Vault now separated by 150 Mi this implies that certain crustal blocks may have traveled through latitudes greater than 120° over millions of years the pace of these historical offsets is challenging to comprehend but aligns with the rate observed during recorded history with drift estimated to be up to 2 in per year predicting earthquakes one of the Intriguing aspects of studying faults including the San Andreas Fault is the ability to identify seismic gaps these are sections of the fault where significant earthquakes have not occurred for an extended period seismologists and geologists have frequently used the presence of seismic gaps to predict when powerful earthquakes might strike over the past 1,400 to 1,500 years geological studies indicate that significant earthquakes have occurred on the southern San Andrea's fault at intervals of approximately 150 years given that there hasn't been a major earthquake in the southern San Andreas since 1857 it's reasonable to anticipate that one is overdue however it's important to note that large earthquakes do not typically strike suddenly they are often preceded by increased seismic activity which can include several for shocks with magnitudes around five along the fault additionally surface changes may occur in the leadup to a major earthquake such as shortening of survey lines across the fault changes in elevation and effects on strain meters in Wells one noteworthy location for earthquake prediction research is the park field segment of the San Andreas Fault in central California this has experienced moderate sized earthquakes approximately every 20 to 22 years for the past Century or more those frequent events have made Parkfield a focal point for studying earthquake prediction methods while predicting earthquakes with absolute Precision remains a formidable challenge scientists have made substantial progress in understanding the conditions and signs that may precede seismic events the data collected from Parkfield and other earthquake prone regions contribute to our evolving understanding of earthquake precursors if you're liking the video so far make sure to subscribe to the channel the big one for Californians the term the big one has long been a source of concern the big one refers to a massive earthquake one exceeding magnitude 7 that could unleash catastrophic Devastation according to research conducted in 2006 by Yuri fialo an associate professor at the scrips institution of oceanography green Institute of geophysics and planetary physics physics the San Andreas faults has accumulated enough stress to trigger an earthquake of such magnitude what's even more unsettling is that the likelihood of a major earthquake appears to be increasing at a rate faster than previously predicted by experts the head of the Southern California seismic Center emphasized the critical state of the San Andreas fault suggesting that it could cause a significant earthquake at any time in the coming years the southern portion of the fault in particular is a cause for concern it appears to be loaded and ready to rupture which is a familiar scenario for Californians who have experienced earthquakes in the past the accumulated stress in this region has heightened fears that the impending earthquake could indeed be the big one while the San Andreas fault is the most well-known seismic threat in California it's not the only one the Hayward vault which runs beneath the University of California and along the base of the Berkeley Hills is another ticking Time Bomb unlike the San Andreas fault the Hayward fault is already in slow motion and this gradual movement adds to the potential danger it poses the Hayward fault last produced a significant earthquake in 1868 which means it is long overdue for another sizable earthquake according to Richard Allen a Berkeley Professor an earthquake along the Hayward fault could lead to dramatic consequences including liquefication of the ground beneath California Memorial Stadium what do you think about this let us know in the comments section below and make sure to like the video thanks for watching