TIBO.

Earth’s Rotation IS Slowing Down. But More Earthquakes? That’s A Hypothesis, Not A Fact

“However, there are many reasons to be skeptical. The connection between the changes in the magnetic field and Earth’s periodic slowing down appears to be correlative, but no causal link has been established. We are not certain that this mechanism is real. We’ve also only had approximately four years since 1900 that display this excess of earthquakes, and to predict that 2018 will be the fifth requires a rather large leap-of-faith. Finally, 2017 has only exhibited seven earthquakes of magnitude 7.0 or higher: well below the 15-20 average. Statistical fluctuations are large, and even if we get 25-30 earthquakes next year, that doesn’t necessarily mean that the Earth’s slowing rotation caused it.”

Predicting earthquakes has proven to be one of the most difficult scientific tasks humanity has ever taken on. Although the location — the where of earthquakes — has been relatively easy to predict on average, owing to our understanding of plate tectonics, the when of earthquakes has been thus far impossible. Since 1900, we’ve seen an average of around 15-20 earthquakes a year, but with large fluctuations. For example, even though powerful earthquakes have rocked numerous populated areas this year, there have only been 7, so far, of magnitude 7.0 or greater. Yet a bold prediction has just been made: that 2018 will see approximately 25-30 earthquakes of magnitude 7.0 or greater, owing to the slowing rotation of Earth from 2014-2018. It’s based on a long-term correlation we’ve observed, but the evidence is far from concrete.

What’s next for NASA? A quick look at some of the big things coming up:

1. We will add to our existing robotic fleet at the Red Planet with the InSight Mars lander set to study the planet’s interior.

This terrestrial planet explorer will address one of the most fundamental issues of planetary and solar system science - understanding the processes that shaped the rocky planets of the inner solar system (including Earth) more than four billion years ago.

2. The Mars 2020 rover will look for signs of past microbial life, gather samples for potential future return to Earth.

The Mars 2020 mission takes the next step by not only seeking signs of habitable conditions on the Red Planet in the ancient past, but also searching for signs of past microbial life itself. The Mars 2020 rover introduces a drill that can collect core samples of the most promising rocks and soils and set them aside in a “cache” on the surface of Mars.

3. The James Webb Space Telescope will be the premier observatory of the next decade, studying the history of our Universe in infrared.

Webb will study every phase in the history of our Universe, ranging from the first luminous glows after the Big Bang, to the formation of solar systems capable of supporting life on planets like Earth, to the evolution of our own solar system.

4. The Parker Solar Probe will “touch the Sun,” traveling closer to the surface than any spacecraft before.

This spacecraft, about the size of a small car, will travel directly into the sun’s atmosphere about 4 million miles from our star’s surface. Parker Solar Probe and its four suites of instruments – studying magnetic and electric fields, energetic particles, and the solar wind – will be protected from the Sun’s enormous heat by a 4.5-inch-thick carbon-composite heat shield.

5. Our OSIRIS-REx spacecraft arrives at the near-Earth asteroid Bennu in August 2018, and will return a sample for study in 2023.

This mission will help scientists investigate how planets formed and how life began, as well as improve our understanding of asteroids that could impact Earth.

6. Launching in 2018, the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) will search for planets around 200,000 bright, nearby stars.

The Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) is the next step in the search for planets outside of our solar system (exoplanets), including those that could support life. The mission will find exoplanets that periodically block part of the light from their host stars, events called transits.

7. A mission to Jupiter’s ocean-bearing moon Europa is being planned for launch in the 2020s.

The mission will place a spacecraft in orbit around Jupiter in order to perform a detailed investigation of Europa – a world that shows strong evidence for an ocean of liquid water beneath its icy crust and which could host conditions favorable for life.

8. We will launch our first integrated test flight of the Space Launch System rocket and Orion spacecraft, known as Exploration Mission-1.

The Space Launch System rocket will launch with Orion atop it. During Exploration Mission-1, Orion will venture thousands of miles beyond the moon during an approximately three week mission.

9. We are looking at what a flexible deep space gateway near the Moon could be.

We’ve issued a draft announcement seeking U.S. industry-led studies for an advanced solar electric propulsion (SEP) vehicle capability. The studies will help define required capabilities and reduce risk for the 50 kilowatt-class SEP needed for the agency’s near-term exploration goals.

10. Want to know more? Read the full story.

Finally have a chance to post Alex Fierro here as well! She was so fun and interesting to draw, yet a bit of a challenge, since I knew how many people have expected this particular drawing:”D I did all in my powers to do Alex justice, so I hope you can see it *3*~ 

Edit: many people wrote me I shouldn’t have referred to Alex as s(he), so I’m fixing it to just she! I’m not too far into the second book, and I know so far Alex said to refer as “she” unless she states otherwise, so I assumed at some point she does state otherwise and we switch to referring as “he”! I didn’t know how to refer to Alex in the post as in she/he, just she or just he, but I’ve seen people in the comments referring as s(he), so I thought it was good to go option. Sorry for that! 

I feel like it’s a general rule of mine: favourite character has to suffer a fair amount. 

Finally can post these babies on here! I’m getting attached, so I really tried to do them justice for Rick Riordan’s website.