“Skyquake” : A Mysterious Phenomenon that Baffles Scientists

7th October 2024

3 minutes read

“Skyquake” : A Mysterious Phenomenon that Baffles Scientists

“Skyquake” is the name given to a mysterious phenomenon recorded in various parts of the world, where powerful noises from the sky are heard without a clear source of the noise, according to the British newspaper “Daily Mail.”

So far, the exact cause of the phenomenon has not been revealed, despite numerous investigations. However, scientists have confirmed that it is a real atmospheric phenomenon.

This mysterious atmospheric phenomenon has been heard around the world for over 200 years, without scientists being able to uncover its true nature.

“Skyquakes” are often described as an explosive noise, sometimes strong enough to shake windows and buildings.

Among the places where the phenomenon has been observed are the Ganges River in India, the east coast of the United States and its small lakes, Japan, the Bay of Fundy in Canada, and parts of Australia, Belgium, Scotland, Italy, and Ireland.

Theories

Scientists have attempted to uncover the source of these loud noises, proposing theories such as a meteor exploding in the atmosphere, military exercises, explosions in quarries, storms, or distant earthquakes, but no theory has satisfactorily explained all the recorded noises.

“Skyquakes” have been described as “rumbling sounds” or “loud explosions.” These sounds have also been referred to as “lake guns” or “Seneca guns,” named after Seneca Lake in upstate New York, where this phenomenon was also observed in 1850.

American writer James Fenimore Cooper described the phenomenon in his 1850 story “The Lake Gun” as a “sound resembling the explosion of heavy artillery, inexplicable by any known laws of nature,” in addition to a “deep, hollow, distant, and solemn” sound.

These mysterious events have been recorded throughout history, puzzling both scientists and the general public. It has not been possible to identify the explosions due to their random timing, and they have not been linked to any other natural events.

Study

Scientists have started using seismic data obtained from the “ISTA” network, which includes over 400 seismic stations across the United States, to detect earthquakes, volcanoes, and landslides.

A team of scientists at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill compared ISTA data with news articles to determine whether the noises were caused by earthquakes.

Eli Bird, a researcher who participated in the study, said, “In general, we think this is an atmospheric phenomenon, we do not believe it is from seismic activity. We assume it propagates through the atmosphere, not the ground.”

Scientists speculated that another possibility could be asteroids, space rocks that explode when they hit Earth’s atmosphere.

Bird mentioned another possibility involving oceanic events, such as the sound of large waves crashing offshore or thunder over the ocean.

He explained: “The atmospheric conditions may be such that they amplify in a certain direction or primarily affect this local area.”

However, despite their efforts, seismologists are still unable to definitively determine the source of “skyquakes.”