We found a match
Your institution may have access to this item. Find your institution then sign in to continue.
- Title
Coral isotopes show quake history.
- Authors
Hand, Eric
- Abstract
The article reports on the discovery of the use of carbon isotopes that are trapped for thousands of years in coral skeletons in determining the long-term frequency of major earthquakes in southeast Asia and the South Pacific. Accordingly, corals have been used before by geoscientists in studying the result of the terraced growth patterns to search earthquake history. A major quake can thrust parts of a reef above the low-tide level, killing the uncovered coral polyps that could result to the elevation of an entire region. Moreover, a method was made by paleoclimatologist Micheal Gagan with his colleagues at the Australian National University through earthquake-induced shifts in the means that corals store carbon which relies on a long-lasting and prevalent record.
- Subjects
EARTHQUAKE magnitude measurement; CARBON isotopes; EARTHQUAKE intensity; EARTHQUAKES; EARTH movements; CORALS; GEOLOGICAL research; GAGAN, Michael
- Publication
Nature, 2008, Vol 454, Issue 7203, p378
- ISSN
0028-0836
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.1038/454378a