Coronavirus is really hostile to our environment, but to a large extent, that’s a good thing.
Our home planet literally vibrates as a result of human movement, from driving cars to industry to sporting events and concerts. However, lately, that seismic hum has become a whisper thanks to the pandemic blockade. As a result, we have now entered the quietest period of artificial seismic noise recorded in history, called “anthropause,” according to scientists.
“This quiet period is probably the longest and largest damping of man-made seismic noise since we started monitoring Earth in detail using vast seismometer monitoring networks,” said seismologist Stephen Hicks of Imperial College London at the UK. “Our study uniquely highlights how much human activities affect solid Earth, and could allow us to see more clearly than ever what differentiates human and natural noise.”
And now, the lack of noise pollution could make it easier to track and predict earthquakes and volcanic eruptions.
Data collected from 268 seismic monitoring stations in 117 countries reflected this drastic reduction in noise readings. Outside of the COVID-19 era, these life-saving facilities are configured to monitor the many movements of Earth. Typically, anthropogenic buzz interferes with gathering the clearest reading of the seismic shift.
“With increasing urbanization and growing global populations, more people will live in geologically dangerous areas,” said study lead author Thomas Lecocq, a seismologist at the Royal Observatory of Belgium, whose study was published in the journal Science on Thursday. .
“Therefore, it will be more important than ever to differentiate between natural and man-made noise so that we can ‘hear’ and better monitor the ground movements under our feet,” Lecocq explained. “This study could help launch this new field of study.”
The stillness of the planet since February has established a new baseline for human activity, which will better help scientists analyze future data and the degree to which we have affected Earth’s vibrations since the pre-industrial era. This new starting point will help researchers better predict impending seismic hazards.
“The blockages caused by the coronavirus pandemic may have given us an idea of how human and natural noises interact within Earth,” said Hicks.
“We hope this information will generate new studies that will help us better listen to Earth and understand natural signals that we would otherwise have missed.”
.
