Japan has been hit by another earthquake, raising global concerns about seismic activity. The earthquake occurred in the Noto area with a magnitude of 4.4 and a depth of 10 kilometers, and shortly after the earthquake, Mount Ontake in Kagoshima Prefecture also erupted, and the eruption of the crater caused a large number of rockfalls to accumulate within a kilometer, raising the volcanic alert level from 2 to 3. This spate of natural disasters has raised questions about whether the earth's seismic activity has entered a "shaking mode" and concerns about earthquake damage, especially the economic loss of 800 billion yen.
First, the Earth's seismic activity has always existed, not the newly opened "shaking mode". The Earth experiences earthquakes almost all the time, although most of them occur in remote areas or are of a small magnitude that does not attract widespread attention. The complexity of Earth's seismic activity makes it difficult to predict the occurrence of earthquakes accurately.
When scientists study the periodicity of seismic activity, they have found that although there are certain variations, there are huge differences in seismic activity in different regions. As a traditional seismic zone, the Pacific Rim has had many major earthquakes in history, but the specific cycle and law are still elusive.
Solar activity has also become one of the focal points of the study of earthquakes. Solar activity occurs approximately every 11 years, and the activity of solar wind and solar flares may be related to the seismic activity of the Earth. However, there is currently a lack of substantial evidence for this idea, because the causes of earthquakes are extremely complex, and human technology has not yet been able to go deep underground to observe.
In response to seismic activity in the Japanese region, the country does have its own "seismic cycle". Statistics show that on average, every 160 years, Japan will experience a major earthquake. In addition, Japan is located at the intersection of multiple tectonic plates, and the occurrence of earthquakes is closely related to plate activity as well as fault changes. However, accurate prediction of the number and magnitude of future earthquakes is still a problem for geologists.
The economic damage caused by the Noto earthquake was mainly in the form of damaged houses and damaged infrastructure. About 15% of all earthquakes in Japan occur in the country, so the standard of earthquake preparedness is high. However, most of the houses in the Noto area were built in the 80s of the last century, and their compliance with the new standards was low, resulting in more significant losses.
In the long run, the frequency of earthquakes has shaped the overall character of the Japanese people. Due to the uncertainty of the earthquake, the Japanese show loneliness and a sense of crisis, making them cold and mechanical in the face of disasters. The impact of the earthquake was not only felt at the individual level, but also profoundly affected the sense of fatalism and resilience of Japanese society as a whole.
Overall, the Earth's seismic activity is a diverse natural phenomenon, and humans need to make constant efforts to adapt and mitigate the possible losses in the face of this natural force.