[Geysers] Quake that triggered Indonesian tsunami affected Japan's hot springs

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Quake that triggered Indonesian tsunami affected Japan's hot springs

http://mdn.mainichi.co.jp/news/20050518p2a00m0dm011000c.html

An earthquake off Sumatra that triggered a devastating tsunami in
December last year caused changes in the water levels and temperatures
of some hot springs in Japan that are 6,000 kilometers away from its
focus, seismologists have concluded.

The finding has demonstrated the scale and intensity of the earthquake
that left thousands of people dead in Indonesia, Sri Lanka, India and
other countries.

A group of seismologists led by Tottori University Prof. Ryohei Nishida
will present the results of their research at the 2005 Joint Meeting
for Earth and Planetary Science to get under way in Chiba on Saturday.

"Ground water carries information on the situation below the ground.
The data we've got will be meaningful in our efforts to clarify the
mechanism of the earthquake," Prof. Nishida said.

The research team has observed the water in 15 hot springs in Tottori,
Shimane and Okayama Prefectures in a bid to study relations between
earthquakes and ground water in Japan, and detected clear changes in
four of the locations.

The water level in the Tottori hot spring declined 2 centimeters within
30 minutes after the seismic waves reached the area, while in the
Saginoyu hot spring in the Shimane Prefecture city of Yasugi, the water
level rose 4 centimeters within seven hours.

In Sagnoyu, the water temperature dropped from 40.6 degrees Celsius to
39.6 degrees 10 minutes after the seismic wave reached the area, then
to 39.1 degrees 24 hours later.

However, the water temperature rose in the Iwai hot spring in Iwami,
Tottori Prefecture. The temperature, which had stood at 45.12 degrees,
rose to 45.35 degrees the day after the Sumatra earthquake.

In the Okutsu hot spring in the Okayama Prefecture town of Kagamino,
the temperature fell 0.03 degrees to 27.72 degrees 10 minutes after the
seismic waves reached the town, then rose to 27.86 degrees.

The water levels and temperatures of hot springs constantly vary, but
seismologists said the changes in the four hot springs they observed
following the Sumatra quake were remarkable.

Moreover, the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and
Technology's geographical survey center said they observed changes in
the water levels of 48 of 57 wells in Japan. In particular, the center
observed a five-meter change in the water level in Yasutomi, Hyogo
Prefecture. (Mainichi Shimbun, Japan, May 18, 2005)

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