Definition
Earthquake sounds. Atmospheric pressure waves associated with earthquakes, especially those audible to humans.
Introduction
“… previous to an earthquake, a roaring is usually heard,” wrote Lucius Annaeus Seneca, circa 65 CE, in the sixth volume of “Naturales Quaestiones” (translation by Clarke and Geike, 1910). While Seneca’s explanations for earthquakes now seem fanciful, this statement remains accurate and historical records of earthquake sounds have been joined over the last few decades by instrumental studies of this phenomenon.
A particularly interesting case of earthquake sounds concerns the long reported noises near Moodus, Connecticut, whose town name is derived from a Wangunk word meaning “where noises come from the ground.” Reports of these noises predate the arrival of European settlers who described them as accompanying shaking “as though in an earthquake” (Davis, 1897). Seismographic studies of the earthquakes that accompany the Moodus Noises demonstrate that...
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Acknowledgments
This article greatly benefited from reviews by Jeanne Hardebeck, David Hill, Carol Mark, Stephanie Ross, and Matthieu Sylvander.
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Michael, A.J. (2011). Earthquake Sounds. In: Gupta, H.K. (eds) Encyclopedia of Solid Earth Geophysics. Encyclopedia of Earth Sciences Series. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-90-481-8702-7_201
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