地震简问简答/Is there earthquake weather?

Q: Is there earthquake weather?

问：是否有地震天气？

A: In the 4th Century B.C., Aristotle proposed that earthquakes were caused by winds trapped in subterranean caves. Small tremors were thought to have been caused by air pushing on the cavern roofs, and large ones by the air breaking the surface. This theory lead to a belief in earthquake weather, that because a large amount of air was trapped underground, the weather would be hot and calm before an earthquake. A later theory stated that earthquakes occurred in calm, cloudy conditions, and were usually preceded by strong winds, fireballs, and meteors.

答：在公元前4世纪，亚里士多德提出，地震是由地下洞穴的气流运动所造成的。小地震被认为是由于气流冲击洞穴顶部引起的，而较大的地震则是由于气流冲破地表造成的。相信这一理论的人会相信有地震天气：由于大量气流在地底积聚，地震前就会变得炎热、无风。之后还有理论指出，地震多发生在无风、多云的天气条件下，地震来临前通常会出现强风，火球和流星等。

However, there is no connection between weather and earthquakes. They are the result of geologic processes within the earth and can happen in any weather and at any time during the year. Earthquakes originate miles underground. Wind, precipitation, temperature, and barometric pressure changes affect only the surface and shallow subsurface of the Earth. Earthquakes are focused at depths well out of the reach of weather, and the forces that cause earthquakes are much larger than the weather forces. Earthquakes occur in all types of weather, in all climate zones, in all seasons of the year, and at any time of day. Sometimes, we are asked: "Do earthquakes change the weather in any way?" Earthquakes themselves do not cause weather to change. Earthquakes, however, are a part of global tectonics, a process that often changes the elevation of the land and its morphology. Tectonics can cause inland areas to become coastal or vice versa. Changes significant to alter the climate occur over millions of years, however, and after many earthquakes.

事实上，天气和地震并没有联系。地震是地质运动的结果，不管天气如何，一年四季无论何时都有可能发生地震。地震来自地表以下数英里的地方，而风、降水、气温、气压的变化只能影响到地表和地下浅层。地震发生于天气不可能影响到的地壳深层，造成地震的能量也远远超过气候变化所需的能量。地震曾经在不同天气状况，不同气候带，不同季节，及一天中不同时间发生过。有人会问：“那地震会不会引起天气的改变？”地震本身并不导致天气的变化。不过，地震是地壳运动的一部分，这个过程经常会改变地面海拔和相应的地形地貌。地壳运动会把内陆变成沿海，或者正好相反。然而，只有历经数百万年和无数次地震之后，这些地震带来的影响才会显著到改变气候。