5.8 Earthquake Aug 23, 2011

[09-10 analogy]

By the time I'd registered it as an earthquake, it was over. My impressions of it can't be separated from the points of reference I was using in real time to filter the experience. So it's hard to be totally objective about what I felt at the time; it really was something very unique because I have no antecedents to the experience of having the structure around me shake like hell for a couple of seconds. You experience a wind gust of 70 MPH, your point of reference can be a wind gust of 20; a heat index of 122, well heat indicies of 105 happen just about summer around here -- hell, you can get that in a sauna. But out of nowhere, a house staring to shudder like it's got a fever that breaking -- that's a bit of an outlier in my life and, I imagine, in the lives of millions of people around here who've never put in time in earthquake zones.

There was a sound that crescendoed just when the "violent" -- yeah, that's the proper word to use, I don't need the Mercalli scale to tutor me on how to use the language -- vibration began. What made it violent wasn't the intensity of the shaking but that it was so unexpected and (in my experience) unprecedented. In retrospect, my attention was arrested by three things: how the chair I was sitting in shook , how the windows rattled, and how my elderly dog slept through the whole thing. In the immediate aftermath, I wondered if in fact it was an earthquake, because I looked to the dog for validation and he was snoring away as if nothing had happened. There was a brief nanosecond when I wondered whether I'd somehow imagined the whole thing, or that maybe my mail was being delivered by a Gorgon.

[Ian]

Not sure what would be scarier for most -- it happening when it did around 1:50 in the afternoon when people are at work/in public, or it happening overnight/early morning when people are sleeping (like last years). Last July's was much, much, much weaker, but I was almost just as scared because being awoken by your house shaking at 5:30 in the morning is obviously terrifying. What do you guys think?

I wrote a blog about the 'great quake' -- mostly because it's been far too long since I last did on my site.

Three quakes I mention, two on the same day -- two were pre-dawn quakes.

Northridge of course is well known:

http://en.wikipedia....idge_earthquake

Then Landers a few years earlier:

http://en.wikipedia....ders_earthquake

I lived right off a range created by the San Andreas so I was always kind of obsessed with that stuff but we lived on pretty solid footing as well. Getting woken up is pretty scary.. but I can see how being in a city during the day could trump that perhaps. The thing I will always remember from Northridge was going outside and watching the sky intensely light up with power flashes in the minutes after (and it was crystal clear so you could see super distant stuff). I was, what, almost 13... but even then I was partially thinking some war had just started or something.

[stormtracker]

Got to admit Randy, Jack Johnson wasnt something to be proud of.

Jack Johnson was a tool.

But what has that got to do with anything and the snobbery re: the county?

[stormtracker]

that just endeared you with Randy, I'm sure

Eh, whatever.

I was raised in Prince George's County and I also lived in Montgomery County. Both have sh*tty areas and both have great areas. I just felt the need to address the typical talk out of your ass insults about the county, especially when it's a flat out lie.

[ThePhotoGuy]

To be fair I just read a lot of schools in Fairfax are damaged also.

Anne Arundel County had damaged to a middle school and a high school.

[Ian]

Eh, whatever.

I was raised in Prince George's County and I also lived in Montgomery County. Both have sh*tty areas and both have great areas. I just felt the need to address the typical talk out of your ass insults about the county, especially when it's a flat out lie.

honestly, all of maryland sucks

[TUweathermanDD]

Anne Arundel County had damaged to a middle school and a high school.

Few schools damaged in the area here around Baltimore County.

[stormtracker]

honestly, all of maryland sucks

DIAFE

[mitchnick]

honestly, all of maryland sucks

hard to believe it has the highest household income than any other state, at least it did a few years ago

trashy gubmn't workers, that's all

[stormitecture]

Where is PG county? I'm looking on a map, and I can't find any county by that name.

I guess when you live in Montgomery County, you feel empowered to be snobby and look down on a county you probably think looks like what you see inside the beltway.

Typical.

you know nothing and assume you know what I'm thinking. I'm just as critical of Montgomery County (after all, it's the county that hired and still employs Tony/MoD). I've been pushing the various papers to take a closer look and even dropping hints as to where to look....so stop assuming you know everything. So talk about typical....but whatever, you can go on with the drama...I got better things to do....like live in a world of facts.

[Ian]

was that an aftershock?

[mitchnick]

was that an aftershock?

I didn't feel anything

[Ian]

I didn't feel anything

me either.. i was just changing the topic

[nw baltimore wx]

I didn't feel anything

I read today that half the jokes on Twitter and Facebook regarding the earthquake today were a little funnier if you added, "That's what she said."

[stormtracker]

you know nothing and assume you know what I'm thinking. I'm just as critical of Montgomery County (after all, it's the county that hired and still employs Tony/MoD). I've been pushing the various papers to take a closer look and even dropping hints as to where to look....so stop assuming you know everything. So talk about typical....but whatever, you can go on with the drama...I got better things to do.

Hopefully they include getting your facts straight and stop posting BS.

Deuces.

[Kmlwx]

I should change the thread title -

earthquake and forum quake

[TUweathermanDD]

me either.. i was just changing the topic

very good idea ian!

[stormtracker]

me either.. i was just changing the topic

I'm naming the Earthquake.

Earthquake Qaddafi.

[Ian]

I'm naming the Earthquake.

Earthquake Qaddafi.

You really are tempting me to try (in vain) to hurt you by bringing up dirigibles and naming earthquakes.

[CheesyPoofs]

but I can see how being in a city during the day could trump that perhaps.

Definitely, especially in today's times with everyones mind on possible attacks. I honestly can't imagine what I would have done had I been in public...probably just ran outside.

I'm sure I'd be just as fascinated by quakes if I had your experiences. Also interesting to hear you describe today's quake in the way that you have -- certainly different from some snobby Californians who don't realize how earthquakes impact different areas, well, differently. It's like a Mid Atlantic or NE weenie making fun of someone who lives in Dallas over the city's reaction to a few inches of snow...

[stormtracker]

You really are tempting me to try (in vain) to hurt you by bringing up dirigibles and naming earthquakes.

Prepping my paintshop Dirigible pictures for the Irene thread. Get the helium ready and start the propellers!

[bdevil02]

Today, we are all lawn chairs.

[Ian]

Follow up on Monument:

The National Park Service says the Washington Monument may have suffered cracks near its top during Tuesday’s earthquake, and the monument could be closed indefinitely.

Park service spokesman Bill Line said there appear to be cracks “at the very, very top” of the 555-foot tall structure, and structural engineers were being brought in Wednesday to conduct a close inspection.

Meanwhile, the historic stone obelisk at the center of the Mall, south of the White House, will remain closed, and “could be closed for an indefinite period of time,” he said.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/post_now/post/earthquake-reported-along-the-east-coast/2011/08/23/gIQAozdEZJ_blog.html

[BethesdaWX]

Just out of curiosity, can someone explain how it felt? Was it more of a roll, and then more violent shaking? Just wondering.

Well it definitely started very lightly, woke me up, then felt like it went from a Gentle back/forth shaking to more of a "jarring", which is what I assume led to most of the panic. The last 7-8 seconds are what got my heart racing a bit faster as stuff started moving a little bit and I ran my ass outside.

[nw baltimore wx]

I was in my class room on the north side of our school when it sounded like a pack of animals was running across the roof from south to north towards me. Once the sound got overhead, the shaking starting and having been through a small quake in LA, I knew immediately what was happening. The shaking is unmistakable. Like others have said, it was relatively light at first, and it seemed like it was going to pass quickly, but then a longer and more pronounced wave went through that lasted just long enough to make me wonder if it was going to get worse. Then, like a rogue gust of wind that passes on an otherwise calm day , it stopped.

Minus the structural damage that some areas have, it was definitely a very cool experience.

[gymengineer]

The only reason that I knew this was an earthquake pretty soon was that I experienced a 7.3 magnitude earthquake in Taiwan (11/14/1986). That earthquake woke me up and caused substantial, but scattered, damage across Taipei including some collapsed buildings. The shake from today's quake felt almost as strong and seemed longer than the Taiwan one.

It was definitely cool to experience this earthquake with someone else who could nerd about it at the same time. I was conducting an introductory meeting with an Earth Science teacher when it happened. I asked her as the shaking started "Does this happen often in your building?" thinking that there was a nearby passing train. Then, when the shaking continued and intensified, we both realized it was an earthquake and stood up to look around the room. That's when that jolt that we all experienced happened, with the split-second thought of "If this gets any stronger, the building will begin to collapse." After it was over, she was giddy and said that one of her "bucket list" items just got crossed off.

As the shaking died down, we began to guess at the epicenter and actually discussed the historic eastern quakes. I guessed a IV-V Mercalli intensity, but we didn't think it was a New Madrid quake as the shaking wasn't a rolling motion and didn't last >1 minute. We started talking about Charleston, SC, or maybe even Cape Ann/Boston. Somehow, we managed to finish our meeting, and then I was able to listen to WTOP in my car about where the earthquake epicenter was actually located.

[Ian]

pictures from National Cathedral: http://www.nationalc...quake2011.shtml

Episcopal News Service reported that the bell tower isn't crooked, but there are cracks in the floor in the Cathedral and that it is closed until further notice.

one of my change ringing friends who is still active in the Washington Ringing Society said that of course practice was cancelled tonight and that they've been asked to "not make anything move" for a while.

it actually looks moderately bad in some of these shots:

http://www.theatlanticwire.com/national/2011/08/what-really-happened-national-cathedral-quake/41644/

[BethesdaWX]

The only reason that I knew this was an earthquake pretty soon was that I experienced a 7.3 magnitude earthquake in Taiwan (11/14/1986). That earthquake woke me up and caused substantial, but scattered, damage across Taipei including some collapsed buildings. The shake from today's quake felt almost as strong and seemed longer than the Taiwan one.

It was definitely cool to experience this earthquake with someone else who could nerd about it at the same time. I was conducting an introductory meeting with an Earth Science teacher when it happened. I asked her as the shaking started "Does this happen often in your building?" thinking that there was a nearby passing train. Then, when the shaking continued and intensified, we both realized it was an earthquake and stood up to look around the room. That's when that jolt that we all experienced happened, with the split-second thought of "If this gets any stronger, the building will begin to collapse." After it was over, she was giddy and said that one of her "bucket list" items just got crossed off.

Yeah that jolting near the end was somewhat nerve wracking, I was definitely worried about my house for a few seconds. I am not confident my house is built well at all, certainly not built to withstand an earthquake, I've even had the random thought "what if an earthquake were to hit this area" pass through my head over the years.

My house is still standing, thats all that matters to me. The little things can be paid for by insurance (hopefully)

[mappy]

I'm on the 10th floor and it felt pretty scary. I was writing up a knowledge base on Outlook, etc when I looked up and felt a small vibration at first then I looked around at everybody else looking around with a WTF look on their faces, lol. Then it got worse, I looked outside the windows and saw the windows in the surrounding buildings starting to shake and then the big shake, sort of sideways and my boss came hauling ass out of her office and everybody started running to the stairwell.

The last shake got me and my heart starting pounding. Like I said..to those in earthquake areas, I guess its not a big deal and it may seem like we're blowing this out of proportion..but you gotta realize..most here have NEVER felt that before.

Randy, at least you were smart and left your building. I watched my coworkers scream and run out of the office while I sat in my cube saying "awesome"

[mappy]

Cool article from the Baltimore Sun about the earthquake... in geology terms

http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/bs-md-quake-timeline-20110823,0,1581033.story

I'd also like to note that my college advisor, GIS professor and eventually the guy who hired me and introduced me to my husband... was quoted in the article.