5 Theories Why We're Experiencing Increased Earthquake Activity

5 Theories Why We're Experiencing Increased Earthquake Activity

Planet Earth has experienced a very noticeable up-tick in earthquake activity and intensity over the last five years. Leading up to the great Japan quake, we've witnessed the utter devastation from the 2004 Indian Ocean megathrust earthquake and tsunami, the catastrophic Haiti quake, an axis-moving Chile quake in 2010, massive and multiple quakes in New Zealand, and record earthquake swarms hitting Yellowstone and the New Madrid Fault line in middle America culminating with the worst earthquake in 35 years to hit the area, and many more.

The devastating effects on human civilization are on full display in the most recent 8.9 earthquake in Japan.  The powerful quake and corresponding tsunami showed that not even a fully developed nation with the world's third largest economy can withstand nature's fury.  This was also evident in the New Zealand quakes which continue to demolish the first-world city of Christchurch.

Evidence of increased tectonic activity aside, the great Japan quake of 2011 will go down as the event that finally woke up humanity from their slumber to recognize the potential damage quakes can and will cause.  The huge quakes in Haiti and Chile last year indicated the power of such activity, but the effects of the nuclear meltdown happening in Japan will likely have global consequences that force society to challenge our conventional path.


This new awareness of our fragile existence in the face of such powerful forces of nature has brought about many theories as to why earthquake activity is increasing.  Many will brush it off as natural occurrences without understanding that everything in nature is caused by something, whether or not it can be seen or measured.  Indeed, we are witnessing many earth changes happening for the first time in modern history.  And perhaps all of these anomalies are connected in some way, or at least compounding nature's recent wrath.

Here are five theories as to the cause of increased earthquake activity: