https://www.smithsonianmag.com/rss/tag/earthquakes/RSS feed for EarthquakesenMon, 03 Aug 2026 19:55:29 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/this-400-year-old-impenetrable-japanese-castle-that-survived-a-samurai-siege-just-crumbled-in-an-earthquake-180989248/In 1877, a force rebelling against Emperor Meiji attacked Kumamoto Castle on Japan's southern Kyushu islandMon, 03 Aug 2026 19:55:29 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/this-400-year-old-impenetrable-japanese-castle-that-survived-a-samurai-siege-just-crumbled-in-an-earthquake-180989248/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/in-a-first-scientists-witness-the-seafloor-spread-in-real-time-giving-them-a-rare-glimpse-at-a-mysterious-geologic-process-180989123/Across a matter of days in 2024, the seafloor in part of the Indian Ocean dropped by about 13 feet, and roughly 5.7 billion cubic feet of molten rock rose to the crust's surface, according to a new studyWed, 15 Jul 2026 16:02:29 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/in-a-first-scientists-witness-the-seafloor-spread-in-real-time-giving-them-a-rare-glimpse-at-a-mysterious-geologic-process-180989123/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/powerful-back-to-back-earthquakes-killed-at-least-188-people-in-venezuela-heres-the-science-behind-the-rare-doublet-180989018/On June 24, two quakes above magnitude 7 struck the northern part of the country only 39 seconds apart. While doublet sequences aren't unheard of in seismology, they are uncommon—especially in such short successionThu, 25 Jun 2026 19:10:16 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/powerful-back-to-back-earthquakes-killed-at-least-188-people-in-venezuela-heres-the-science-behind-the-rare-doublet-180989018/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/a-sudden-landslide-triggered-alaskas-2025-mega-tsunami-now-scientists-have-identified-warning-signs-to-predict-similar-events-180988797/Natural disasters like the one at Tracy Arm fjord, about 45 miles south of Juneau, could become more common as climate change alters frigid landscapes, according to researchersTue, 26 May 2026 18:23:43 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/a-sudden-landslide-triggered-alaskas-2025-mega-tsunami-now-scientists-have-identified-warning-signs-to-predict-similar-events-180988797/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/ancient-egyptian-engineering-choices-helped-the-great-pyramid-of-giza-survive-earthquakes-new-research-finds-180988790/Researchers measured vibrations inside and around the pyramid to learn that the structure is surprisingly resilient against seismic tremorsFri, 22 May 2026 18:25:17 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/ancient-egyptian-engineering-choices-helped-the-great-pyramid-of-giza-survive-earthquakes-new-research-finds-180988790/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/when-did-the-earths-crust-start-to-shift-scientists-uncover-evidence-of-plate-tectonics-happening-3-48-billion-years-ago-180988399/A new study provides the oldest direct evidence of tectonic plate movement ever recordedTue, 31 Mar 2026 16:48:42 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/when-did-the-earths-crust-start-to-shift-scientists-uncover-evidence-of-plate-tectonics-happening-3-48-billion-years-ago-180988399/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/sonic-booms-and-earthquake-sensors-can-help-researchers-track-space-junk-as-it-plummets-to-earth-180988059/Falling debris can travel at about 30 times the speed of sound, creating sonic booms that shake the groundMon, 26 Jan 2026 17:18:38 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/sonic-booms-and-earthquake-sensors-can-help-researchers-track-space-junk-as-it-plummets-to-earth-180988059/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/earthquakes-deep-below-antarctic-waters-seem-to-have-surprising-effects-on-life-at-the-surface-180987965/Quakes may cause ocean floor vents to release more nutrients, triggering blooms in plantlike organisms called phytoplankton in the Southern OceanWed, 07 Jan 2026 21:38:05 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/earthquakes-deep-below-antarctic-waters-seem-to-have-surprising-effects-on-life-at-the-surface-180987965/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/ancient-statues-emerge-from-the-waters-off-egypts-coast-where-theyd-been-hiding-for-thousands-of-years-180987230/Several large sculptures were among the trove of artifacts that divers recovered from the waters near Alexandria, Egypt. Officials say the site may have been an extension of the nearby city of CanopusTue, 26 Aug 2025 17:42:28 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/ancient-statues-emerge-from-the-waters-off-egypts-coast-where-theyd-been-hiding-for-thousands-of-years-180987230/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/cctv-footage-captures-the-first-ever-video-of-an-earthquake-fault-in-motion-shining-a-rare-light-on-seismic-dynamics-180987034/A clip recorded in Myanmar in March reveals a curved path of the fault slip, which can help scientists better understand the physics of such eventsThu, 24 Jul 2025 12:00:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/cctv-footage-captures-the-first-ever-video-of-an-earthquake-fault-in-motion-shining-a-rare-light-on-seismic-dynamics-180987034/