Sunday, August 17, 2003
Crystal Ball
It was Feb 2001 and I was sitting at my desk at work. In the middle of my phone conversation, I felt my chair shake. Then I felt my desk shake and things started to fall. I looked to my left and outside the windows and saw the windows of the building, bowing in and out. The rumbling, like a train or a semi truck, got louder as the shaking intensified.Shit! We're having an earthquake! We dove under our desks, some dismissing their phones, some bringing their phones with them to explain to the person on the other end who was NOT in Seattle, what was going on.
Some people panicked and ran outside, (idiots), and some people stood at their desks, running in place. (I wish I was making that up.) After what seemed like an eternity finally the earthquake stopped. We stayed under our desks, glued to the floor as if it were somehow our savior.
Someone from Safety got on the loudspeaker and told us all to file outside to our designated spots in cases of emergencies. We all did so and stood across the street for about 30 minutes, wondering if there would be aftershocks.
Being in an earthquake is no fun, as many of Mother Nature's furies are no fun. What makes an earthquake scary is that you never know when it's going to hit. There is no warning, there is no "spotting" of one 200 miles out. It just hits and you have to hang on and hope for the best.
However! Now scientists are working on being able to predict them!
Anticipating Earthquakes.
"That may be changing, however. Satellite technologies being developed at NASA and elsewhere might be able to spot the signs of an impending quake days or weeks before it strikes, giving the public and emergency planners time to prepare."
I have said this before and I'll say it again. I love science and I love scientists! For those of you who think there is no reason for NASA, you could not be more misinformed!
