Hi All,

From watching a Nova program about volcanos which explains seismic readings I believe I now have a lead as to what the "trailing off sound" ear tone experiencer's have.

While a normal earthquake occurs and rocks fractures, it is a rapid process and ends quickly. But long period earthquakes begin and have a long period of low level seismic signals until it is joined again by the next quake. The reason for this low level seismic signal is the voided area where the noise is traveling through the volcanic lava tubes. This is known as resonance.

It has been a puzzlement to ear tone experiencers as to whether or not they should count the trailing off sound in calculating distances to future epicenters, but from understanding how this works, when an earthquake occurs which delivers this trailing off sound, it means there is a void from which the noise travels. So if you have a fault where it is not close and tight, the trailing off sound will emerge after the initial rock fracture occurs. Therefore the trailing off sound should be discounted when tracking possible quake epicenters.

For our readers who are unfamiliar with what people hear when they receive an ear tone, let me provide a short explanation.

A sound is received in usually one ear, right or left. On rare occasions, both ears. The sound has a pitch level, length, and a sound distinctive to the area where the future earthquake will occur. Most likely these sounds emanate from asperities that are breaking prior to the actual earthquake occurrence. Normal earthquakes create a sound which is end to end a solid sound, but some have a trailing off after the initial sound. However, the most difficult aspect in understanding ear tones is that each fault produces its own unique sound. This is because of its interior structure. Therefore, unless you have a method of measuring the distance from the receiver of the sound to the location, or you memorize the sound itself, the future epicenter will remain elusive to the ear tone subject. Having heard a subduction-related earthquake I now know due to the depth, the pitch is very high and it is followed by a sound like a bomb going off, in that it sounds like a circular sound, not a line.

Ah, another explanation in this process. A little at a time, and the mystery of how this process works is becoming more understandable. Thank Goodness.

Petra