The strange rumble was detected mid-September last year. An odd seismic signal appeared at scientific stations around the globe, but it didn’t look like the busy squiggles of an earthquake. A day passed, and the slow tremor still reverberated. When it continued for a third day, scientists worldwide began assembling to discuss what was causing the grumble in the ground.
Some initially thought the seismic instruments recording the signal were broken, but that was quickly nixed. Maybe it was a new volcano emerging before their eyes, others said. One jokingly ruled out an alien party. As theories were checked off, the scientists dubbed the signal an “Unidentified Seismic Object,” or USO.
“No one had ever seen this. We have nothing to compare it with,” said Kristian Svennevig, a geologist at the Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland.
Nine days later, the vibrations stopped. But the mystery of the USO lasted much longer. A year later, the puzzle has been solved, according to a [study published](http://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.adm9247) in the journal Science on Thursday. It took about 70 people from 15 different countries and more than 8,000 exchanged messages (long enough for a 900-page detective novel) to crack the case.
2 Comments
The strange rumble was detected mid-September last year. An odd seismic signal appeared at scientific stations around the globe, but it didn’t look like the busy squiggles of an earthquake. A day passed, and the slow tremor still reverberated. When it continued for a third day, scientists worldwide began assembling to discuss what was causing the grumble in the ground.
Some initially thought the seismic instruments recording the signal were broken, but that was quickly nixed. Maybe it was a new volcano emerging before their eyes, others said. One jokingly ruled out an alien party. As theories were checked off, the scientists dubbed the signal an “Unidentified Seismic Object,” or USO.
“No one had ever seen this. We have nothing to compare it with,” said Kristian Svennevig, a geologist at the Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland.
Nine days later, the vibrations stopped. But the mystery of the USO lasted much longer. A year later, the puzzle has been solved, according to a [study published](http://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.adm9247) in the journal Science on Thursday. It took about 70 people from 15 different countries and more than 8,000 exchanged messages (long enough for a 900-page detective novel) to crack the case.
Read more here: [https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2024/09/12/seismic-signal-climate-change-landslide-greenland/?utm_campaign=wp_main&utm_medium=social&utm_source=reddit.com](https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2024/09/12/seismic-signal-climate-change-landslide-greenland/?utm_campaign=wp_main&utm_medium=social&utm_source=reddit.com)
It was a landslide.