chop456
09-20-03, 04:48 AM
http://www.space.com/scienceastronomy/quake_prediction_030915.html
Astronomer Predicts Major Earthquake for Japan, Other Experts Express Doubts
By Associated Press
posted: 03:40 pm ET
15 September 2003
TOKYO (AP) _ A Japanese researcher is causing a stir in Tokyo with a prediction based on his study of radio waves that a major destructive earthquake is highly likely to hit the city this week.
Yoshio Kushida, a well-known self-taught astronomer who runs his own observatory just outside Tokyo, published on its Internet site his prediction that a quake with a magnitude of 7 or greater was likely to strike the metropolitan area on Tuesday or Wednesday.
The prediction was soon picked up by a popular weekly magazine and a major daily. It has since been spread by word of mouth, prompting some of the more nervous residents of Japan's quake-prone capital to stock up on bottled water, candles and other disaster preparations.
``It's quite frightening,'' said Ichiro Makita, 48, a company employee who said he had heard about the prediction from a friend. ``I'm trying to avoid old buildings and have stocked up on emergency supplies like an emergency radio and lamp.''
The earthquake research establishment has largely ignored the warning.
Forecasting quakes is generally considered to be impossible with current technology, and Kushida's method of using anomalies in the VHF range of radio waves to predict the timing and intensity of tremors has not gained many believers in the scientific community.
Yukio Misumi, a spokesman for the Central Meteorological Agency, said he was familiar with Kushida's prediction but added that the agency was not doing anything in particular in response to it.
``Our stance is that we are prepared for a magnitude-8 quake in Japan,'' he said. ``But presently, there is no scientific method or technology that would allow us to predict where or when a magnitude-7 might occur. We can't predict earthquakes.''
``We have nothing to specifically to say about Kushida's research,'' he added. ``He's simply expressing his own scientific opinion.''
Kushida, however, is convinced he is on to something and has a duty to inform the public of the threat.
Originally a self-taught astronomer, Kushida opened his private Yatsugatake Observatory in 1985, using radio waves to track passing meteors. He got his name on a pair of newly discovered comets before becoming interested in seismology after the devastating earthquake that hit the western city of Kobe in 1995.
His theory: as pressure builds in the Earth's crust before an earthquake, tiny cracks and magma movements can affect charged particles in the atmosphere, and the resulting electromagnetic changes can be picked up by radio receivers.
Extrapolating from past examples including the Kobe quake, which left more than 6,000 people dead, Kushida believes the waves indicate a shallow and powerful temblor is very likely to hit the Kanto plain, where Tokyo is located.
``It would be terrible not to warn people of a possible disaster in case a quake actually occurs,'' he said. ``If my prediction turns out to be a false alarm, I may face a lot of complaints and harassment and I may not be even able to continue my research. Even so, I thought I should warn every one of the possible danger.''
Such warnings hit a sore nerve in Tokyo, which was ravaged by a quake and fire in 1923 that killed more than 120,000 people and which experts agree is overdue for another ``Big One.'' Still, some people said they'd rather be scared than unaware.
``The Japanese have a short-term memory when it comes to earthquakes,'' said Yoshio Aoyama, 64, a company employee. ``I think it's good to publish things like this periodically.''
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http://www.cnn.com/2003/WORLD/asiapcf/east/09/20/japan.quakestorm/index.html
Tokyo hit by earthquake, typhoon
Saturday, September 20, 2003 Posted: 4:27 AM EDT (0827 GMT)
TOKYO, Japan -- As Typhoon Choi-wan moves across Japan's southern Islands, an earthquake centered hundreds of kilometers off the coast jolted residents in the capital city.
Japan's Meteorological Agency put the quake's magnitude at 5.5, but the U.S. Geological Survey's World Data Center for Seismology reported its magnitude as 4.7.
It was centered nearly 870 kilometers (540 miles) south-southeast of Tokyo, near Japan's Bonin Islands, a remote volcanic island group in the Pacific Ocean.
Seven women attending a memorial service at a Tokyo Buddhist temple sustained minor injuries when one of the temple's walls collapsed on top of them, officials said.
There were no tidal warnings, and the quake -- which struck around 1 p.m. Saturday -- did not disrupt road or railway travel. The shaking lasted about 30 seconds.
Around the same time, Typhoon Choi-wan passed over Okinawa, with wind speeds up to 126 kilometers per hour (78 mph), and is expected to skirt Japan's eastern coast over the weekend.
The storm is expected to reach Tokyo by Monday, drenching the areas with heavy rains, Japan's Meteorological Agency told Kyodo News Agency.
Choi-wan is Cantonese for colorful clouds.
The last typhoon to whirl through the region, Maemi, left at least 96 people dead in South Korea after killing one and injuring more than 90 in southern Japan last month.
Japan is hit by more than a dozen typhoons in a typical year.
Japan, which rests atop several tectonic plates, is also among the most earthquake-prone countries in the world.
Tokyo is particularly vulnerable. A quake and subsequent fire in 1923 killed more than 140,000 people in the capital area, and experts believe Tokyo is overdue for another major jolt.
Astronomer Predicts Major Earthquake for Japan, Other Experts Express Doubts
By Associated Press
posted: 03:40 pm ET
15 September 2003
TOKYO (AP) _ A Japanese researcher is causing a stir in Tokyo with a prediction based on his study of radio waves that a major destructive earthquake is highly likely to hit the city this week.
Yoshio Kushida, a well-known self-taught astronomer who runs his own observatory just outside Tokyo, published on its Internet site his prediction that a quake with a magnitude of 7 or greater was likely to strike the metropolitan area on Tuesday or Wednesday.
The prediction was soon picked up by a popular weekly magazine and a major daily. It has since been spread by word of mouth, prompting some of the more nervous residents of Japan's quake-prone capital to stock up on bottled water, candles and other disaster preparations.
``It's quite frightening,'' said Ichiro Makita, 48, a company employee who said he had heard about the prediction from a friend. ``I'm trying to avoid old buildings and have stocked up on emergency supplies like an emergency radio and lamp.''
The earthquake research establishment has largely ignored the warning.
Forecasting quakes is generally considered to be impossible with current technology, and Kushida's method of using anomalies in the VHF range of radio waves to predict the timing and intensity of tremors has not gained many believers in the scientific community.
Yukio Misumi, a spokesman for the Central Meteorological Agency, said he was familiar with Kushida's prediction but added that the agency was not doing anything in particular in response to it.
``Our stance is that we are prepared for a magnitude-8 quake in Japan,'' he said. ``But presently, there is no scientific method or technology that would allow us to predict where or when a magnitude-7 might occur. We can't predict earthquakes.''
``We have nothing to specifically to say about Kushida's research,'' he added. ``He's simply expressing his own scientific opinion.''
Kushida, however, is convinced he is on to something and has a duty to inform the public of the threat.
Originally a self-taught astronomer, Kushida opened his private Yatsugatake Observatory in 1985, using radio waves to track passing meteors. He got his name on a pair of newly discovered comets before becoming interested in seismology after the devastating earthquake that hit the western city of Kobe in 1995.
His theory: as pressure builds in the Earth's crust before an earthquake, tiny cracks and magma movements can affect charged particles in the atmosphere, and the resulting electromagnetic changes can be picked up by radio receivers.
Extrapolating from past examples including the Kobe quake, which left more than 6,000 people dead, Kushida believes the waves indicate a shallow and powerful temblor is very likely to hit the Kanto plain, where Tokyo is located.
``It would be terrible not to warn people of a possible disaster in case a quake actually occurs,'' he said. ``If my prediction turns out to be a false alarm, I may face a lot of complaints and harassment and I may not be even able to continue my research. Even so, I thought I should warn every one of the possible danger.''
Such warnings hit a sore nerve in Tokyo, which was ravaged by a quake and fire in 1923 that killed more than 120,000 people and which experts agree is overdue for another ``Big One.'' Still, some people said they'd rather be scared than unaware.
``The Japanese have a short-term memory when it comes to earthquakes,'' said Yoshio Aoyama, 64, a company employee. ``I think it's good to publish things like this periodically.''
----------------------------------------------------------------------
http://www.cnn.com/2003/WORLD/asiapcf/east/09/20/japan.quakestorm/index.html
Tokyo hit by earthquake, typhoon
Saturday, September 20, 2003 Posted: 4:27 AM EDT (0827 GMT)
TOKYO, Japan -- As Typhoon Choi-wan moves across Japan's southern Islands, an earthquake centered hundreds of kilometers off the coast jolted residents in the capital city.
Japan's Meteorological Agency put the quake's magnitude at 5.5, but the U.S. Geological Survey's World Data Center for Seismology reported its magnitude as 4.7.
It was centered nearly 870 kilometers (540 miles) south-southeast of Tokyo, near Japan's Bonin Islands, a remote volcanic island group in the Pacific Ocean.
Seven women attending a memorial service at a Tokyo Buddhist temple sustained minor injuries when one of the temple's walls collapsed on top of them, officials said.
There were no tidal warnings, and the quake -- which struck around 1 p.m. Saturday -- did not disrupt road or railway travel. The shaking lasted about 30 seconds.
Around the same time, Typhoon Choi-wan passed over Okinawa, with wind speeds up to 126 kilometers per hour (78 mph), and is expected to skirt Japan's eastern coast over the weekend.
The storm is expected to reach Tokyo by Monday, drenching the areas with heavy rains, Japan's Meteorological Agency told Kyodo News Agency.
Choi-wan is Cantonese for colorful clouds.
The last typhoon to whirl through the region, Maemi, left at least 96 people dead in South Korea after killing one and injuring more than 90 in southern Japan last month.
Japan is hit by more than a dozen typhoons in a typical year.
Japan, which rests atop several tectonic plates, is also among the most earthquake-prone countries in the world.
Tokyo is particularly vulnerable. A quake and subsequent fire in 1923 killed more than 140,000 people in the capital area, and experts believe Tokyo is overdue for another major jolt.