The Outgoing Longwave Radiation Analysis of Medium and Strong Earthquakes

Abstract

Two approaches are applied to outgoing longwave radiation (OLR) data to obtain abnormal changes before and after six earthquakes: the background field analysis (BFA) method, which focuses on statistically processing the increment of a radiation value to the multiyear average of the data; and the tidal force fluctuant analysis method, which abandons background data for many years by using the influence of tidal fluctuations to obtain incremental changes in radiation. The results demonstrate that the increase in OLR data identified via the BFA method was uncertain. In the time distribution, the occurrence time of anomalies is isolated and not continuous. In the spatial distribution, many OLR enhancement areas occurred multiple times in the nonseismic and remote seismic-related fault structure areas. In contrast, through the tidal force fluctuant analysis method a clear and consecutive OLR anomaly emerged in the seismogenic cycle of the tidal force. It corresponded with the tidal force through a unique evolution: increased-earthquake-shrink around the epicentre, consistent with the change in the law of thermal radiation during the rock-breaking process under stress, and clearly related to the earthquake's seismic tectonic stress change. It is proven that the tidal force of a celestial body may trigger an earthquake when the tectonic stress reaches its critical breaking point, and when the triggering action is a continuous rather than brief one-shot process. The in situ stress state is key. The OLR anomaly was the physical performance of underlying surface radiation from the change in seismic tectonic stress.

Keywords

• Earthquake
• outgoing longwave radiation (OLR) anomaly
• thermal infrared
• tidal force