The “seismic quiescence” effect in the Baikal Rift Zone

This paper presents the results from long-term observations of parameters of the Earth’s natural impulsive electromagnetic field (ENIEMF) in the VLF range recorded in the Baikal Rift Zone. We consider the “seismic quiescence” effect and examine possible factors responsible for changes in the daily variations of the magnetic component before earthquakes. We demonstrate daily variations of the ENIEMF magnetic component and their correlation to local storm activity during a seismically quiet period.     

Periodicity of geophysical fields and seismicity: possible links with core motion

Years-long data series of Earth’s natural pulse electromagnetic fields (EPEMF) from the Talaya station near Lake Baikal indicates their mainly terrestrial origin and includes a component of poorly understood stable diurnal and annual crustal rhythms. The short-period crustal motion may drive mechanic-to-electric conversion in rocks and be responsible for diurnal and annual VLF electromagnetic pulses.The lithospheric rather than atmospheric origin of many recorded EPEMF signals is supported by their links with nucleation of earthquakes and respective perfect match of the EPEMF and seismicity diurnal patterns. Joint spectral analysis of the Talaya EPEMF and seismicity time series and comparison with the known spectra of lunar and solar tides shows no direct correlation between the short-period rhythms and the gravitation effects.We suggest that the diurnal and annual EPEMF periodicity may be associated with differential motion of the core and lithosphere and use this hypothesis to model an annual core path. As the model predicts, the inner solid core is never at the Earth’s geometric center but moves relative to the latter along a closed orbit; the plane of the core orbit is normal to the equatorial plane and tilted 45° to the direction to the Sun and to the Earth’s orbit; the core rotates 1.1 deg/yr faster than the Earth. The suggested model of core motion is consistent with the known instability of Earth rotation.