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Great Earthquakes and the Astronomical Positions of Uranus

Abstract

THANKS to the excellent collection of uniform data of earthquakes given by Gutenberg and Richter1, it is now easily possible to study statistically the influence of different factors on earthquakes. In the course of a study of tidal effects on earthquakes2, the astronomical positions of the planets have also been taken into account and a remarkable correlation between the positions of Uranus and the moment of great earthquakes has been established for a certain period. Gutenberg and Richter's data of all earthquakes equal or greater than magnitude 7¾ have been used. The investigations will be published in detail later, but here attention is directed to the results concerning the position of Uranus.

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References

  1. Gutenberg, B., and Richter, C. F., “Seismicity of the Earth”, 2nd edit. (Princeton Univ. Press, 1954).

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  2. Tomaschek, R., “Handbuch der Physik”, 48, 843 (Springer, 1957).

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  3. Gutenberg, B., Trans. Amer. Geophys. Union, 37. No. 5, 608 (1956).

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TOMASCHEK, R. Great Earthquakes and the Astronomical Positions of Uranus. Nature 184, 177–178 (1959). https://doi.org/10.1038/184177a0

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