OGG Annual Banquet - Ottawa Geotechnical Group - OGG · 2019-12-27 · Bulletin of the...

Ottawa Geotechnical Group Sponsors (2013-2014)

AGAT Laboratories George Downing Estate Drilling Marathon Drilling Co. Ltd

BGC Engineering GeoSolv Design/Build Maxxam Analytics

ConeTec Geosynthetic Systems Milestone Environmental Contracting

DYWIDAG-Systems International Canada GKM Consultants OGS Drilling

Exova Laboratories Hellenic Meeting and Reception Centre Paracel Laboratories

George W. Drummond Maccaferri Canada Strata Drilling Group

The Ottawa

Geotechnical Group

Le Groupe Géotechnique

d’Ottawa

Comité exécutif 2013-2014 Executive Committee

Chair / Président Baolin Wang Executive Member / Membre exécutif Julio Ángel Infante Past Chair / Président sortant Clive Kamichaitis Executive Member / Membre exécutif Sean Sterling Vice-Chair / Vice-président Paul Simms Executive Member / Membre exécutif Nell van Walsum CGS Representative/ Représentant SCG Mamadou Fall Advisor / Conseiller Peter Gerabek Treasurer / Trésorier Michel Timmons Student Member / Membre étudiant Mohamadjavad Sheikhtaheri Secretary / Secrétaire Bruce Campbell

Visit our website: www.ottawageotechnicalgroup.com

O G G A n n u a l B a n q u e t

Date: Wednesday, May 14, 2014

Time: Registration at 6:00PM

Location: Lago, 1001 Queen Elizabeth Dr, Ottawa, K1S 5K7

(Dows Lake Pavilion)

Presentation: Earthquake Lights: A Shocking Phenomena!

Speaker: Dr. Robert Thériault

Admission: $50 per person, free parking, PAY IN ADVANCE ONLY

RSVP: Michel Timmons ([email protected]) by noon, May 2, 2014

Registration and Sponsorship Forms available to download on our website

This year’s talk features a world class presentation about Earthquake Lights that may happen both before

and while the ground is shaking. Our speaker, Dr. Robert Thériault is a lead author of a journal paper on

Earthquake Lights published in January 2014, which was widely quoted by many high profile news media,

such as the National Geographic, the Nature, the Scientific American, the Smithsonian, the Physics World,

USA Today, the Space Reporter, the Sci-News and the Seismological Society of America to name a few.

Abstract

The seismological approach has never been able to forecast future earthquakes except within wide

statistical margins, typically on the order of several years or decades. However, in the last decade, a

growing body of evidence has been accumulating in the scientific community outside seismology showing

that precursory, non-seismic signals suggestive of approaching earthquake activity, mostly pointing at

electric processes deep in the Earth, can be observed and recorded in the field (Freund, 2013). These

signals yield anomalous readings over a wide range of time scales, from minutes and hours to days, even








weeks, prior to the seismic events. Such observations, which include luminosities spatially and temporally

associated with earthquakes, termed earthquake lights (EQL), are highly significant, as they might

become a contributing component in a practical earthquake forecasting methodology. The elaboration of

such a global forecasting system could give people time to leave buildings prior to destructive

earthquakes, potentially saving many lives. A few examples exist where people have, in fact, taken action

at the sight of pre-earthquake luminosities and escaped to safety, such as before the Tangshan 1976

earthquake and the L’Aquila 2009 earthquake.

In a recent study (Thériault et al., 2014), we investigated the tectonic environments of earthquakes

spatially and temporally associated with EQL. These luminosities vary in shape and extent, the most

frequent occurrences being globular luminous masses (in the air, stationary or moving), flame-like

luminosities “coming out” of the ground and bright atmospheric illuminations (see figures 1 to 4). Most

EQL are seen before or during a main shock. This suggests that the process responsible for EQL is

related to the build-up of stress in the crust prior to fault rupture and/or to the rapid changes in stress

levels during fault movement.

Our study focused on 85 earthquakes with associated EQL from around the world, of which 20 occurred in

North America. Some of the better documented cases include the M 5.9 Saguenay earthquake of 1988

and the M 8.1 New Madrid (Missouri) earthquake of 1811. EQL were also reported in association with the

M 7.5 Charlevoix earthquake of 1663 and the M 5.0 St-Fidèle (Charlevoix) earthquake of 1979. Although

EQL are generally observed within 100 km of the epicentral area, several have been seen much further

away (e.g. up to 600 km away for the New Madrid earthquake). Generally, EQL observed over 150 km

away from the epicentre were co-seismic, suggesting that their origin is related to the passing of the

seismic waves.

Our work indicates that 80% of the earthquakes and/or their associated luminosities occurred near rifts or

paleorifts, 17% near strike-slip faults, and only 3% near shallow-dipping thrust faults. Hence more than

95% of EQL have been observed in tectonic settings that are characterized by the presence of deeply

penetrating and steeply dipping faults. Although less than 5% of the world’s earthquakes occur in

intraplate tectonic settings, they are the ones with most associated EQL.

Our proposed mechanism for the origin of EQL is based on the stress-activation of highly mobile positive

electronic charge carriers, termed positive holes, their flow within the crust, and their role in the generation

- under high stress rates - of solid state plasmas that eventually discharge across the ground-to-air








interface. This process leads to the ionization of air molecules and ensuing generation of luminosities,

among other phenomena. Deeply penetrating subvertical to vertical faults related to rifts or paleorifts, or to

strike-slip tectonics, seem to favor conditions that lead to pre- or co-seismic luminosities, perhaps offering

a pathway for the flow of positive electronic charges. Furthermore, the typical presence of mafic rocks in

rift settings may also favorably influence the generation of positive holes and ensuing solid state plasmas,

as shown from lab experiments.

Figure 1. Photograph of luminous spheres moving above the ground near the shore of Tagish Lake, southern Yukon. The spheres, which have a diameter of about one meter, are interpreted to be related to the mb 6.2 Cross Sound earthquake that occurred the same day on July 1, 1973, near the southwestern coast of Alaska. Photo credit : Jim Conacher.








Figure 2. Sketch of flame-like luminosities issuing from the ground and luminous effluvia in the air observed about 40 km from the Mw 6.4 Djidjelli (Algeria) earthquake of 1856. Sketch credit : Eugène Ciceri (taken from Boscowitz, 1890).

Figure 3. Photograph taken with a fisheye lens in 1966 of an atmospheric illumination from Mt. Kimyo, Japan, in the epicentral area of the Matsushiro earthquake series. The luminosity lasted about 90 seconds. Photo credit : Mr. T. Kuribayashi (taken from Derr, 1973, after Yasui, 1968).








Figure 4. Sketch of a bright luminous body observed about 20 km to the NNE of the mb 5.9 Saguenay earthquake of November 1988. The witness (Mr. Dallaire) was engulfed by the fast-moving bright bluish- white light, after which he immediately felt the tremors. Sketch credit : Julie Pelchat (taken from St-Laurent, 2000 and St-Laurent et al., 2006).

References

Boscowitz, A. (1890). Earthquakes. Translated by Coulson Bell Pitman, G. Routledge and Sons, London, 395 p.

Derr, J. S. (1973). Earthquake Lights: A Review of Observations and Present Theories. Bulletin of the

Seismological Society of America 63(6-1), 2177-2187. Freund, F. (2013). Earthquake Forewarning – A Multidisciplinary Challenge from the Ground up to Space.

Acta Geophysica, 61(4): 775-807. St-Laurent, F. (2000). The Saguenay, Québec, Earthquake Lights of November 1988-January 1989.

Seismological Research Letters 71, 160-174. St-Laurent, F., Derr, J. S. and Freund, F. T. (2006). Earthquake Lights and the Stress-Activation of

Positive Hole Charge Carriers in Rocks. Journal of Physics and Chemistry of the Earth 31(4-9), 305-312.

Thériault, R., St-Laurent, F., Freund, F. T. and Derr, J. S. (2014). Prevalence of Earthquake Lights

Associated with Rift Environments. Seismological Research Letters 85(1), 159-178. Yasui, Y. (1968). A Study on the Luminous Phenomena Accompanied with Earthquake (Part 1). Memoirs

of the Kakioka Magnetic Observatory 13, 25-61.








About the speaker

Robert Thériault completed a B.Sc. and a Master’s degree in geology at the University of Ottawa. He

obtained in 1998 a Ph.D. from the University of Quebec in Chicoutimi, where his research focused on Cu-

Ni-PGE magmatic sulfide deposits.

He has been working for the Quebec Ministry of Natural Resources since 1998. He was first assigned to

the Mines Division from 1998 to 2003, then to the Energy Division from 2003 to 2011, where he worked

mainly on the shale gas potential of Quebec, to finally return to the Mines Division in 2011.

He has been collaborating since 2006 with scientists that specialize in earthquake precursor phenomena,

and this collaboration recently culminated with the publication of a synthesis paper on earthquake lights.

Event Timeline

Time Timeline Notes

6:00PM Guests Arrival Guests receive one complimentary drink

6:30PM Guests Seated Guests begin to take their seats for the meal service

6:45PM Meal Service Meal begins, wine is poured and servers bring food

8:00PM Presentation Once dessert has been served, the presentation will begin

9:30PM End of Event Approximate end of event








Event Menu

Guests have many choices. As previous years, colour coupons will be given to you at your arrival. The

coupon will help servers to know which meal to give you.

Appetizer (2 choices)

Caesar salad, crisp romaine lettuce tossed with roasted garlic and buttermilk dressing topped with

smoked bacon lardons and Parmigianio Reggiano cheese

Or

Soup, white wine and butter braised leeks with creamy chicken broth and golden potato puree topped

with crispy leeks

Main Courses (3 choices)

Salmon, 7 oz Atlantic salmon fillet herb roasted and served on caramelized onion and brown rice pilaf

topped with a lemon dill butter sauce

Or

Beef, 10 oz Canadian grain fed Angus Reserve striploin steak grilled and topped with an heirloom tomato

and wild mushroom ragout on roasted fingerling potatoes

Or

Veggie, Portabella mushroom ravioli with seasonal vegetables in a roasted heirloom tomato and basil

sauce

Dessert (2 choices)

New York Style Cheesecake with sour cherry topping

Or

Frangelico and dark chocolate Bombe with raspberry coulis

Includes

Regular and decaffeinated coffee, regular and herbal tea

Miscellaneous

1- Free parking, a voucher will be given at your arrival.

2- Sponsorship (200$) for our banquet is always welcome, sponsorship form available to download

on our website.








Thanks to this year Annual Banquet Sponsors

To be announced soon...

Maps

LAGO

1001 Queen Elizabeth Dr

Ottawa, Ontario

K1S 5K7

Parking

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OGG Annual Banquet - Ottawa Geotechnical Group - OGG · 2019-12-27 · Bulletin of the...

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