This evening I went to the excellent USGS Earthquake tracking web site to find out if the rocking "thud" our house made tonight was a quake. Although the site lists earthquake info instantly on low-res maps, their precise location maps have always been old pastel-colored topo maps only a geologist could love.
But when I clicked on the link for tonight's quake (a minor 3.2 just a few miles away), I saw a link to Google Maps. And sure enough, the link showed a beautiful satellite view of the exact location of the earthquake. Nice! Odd how easy it is to notice the fault lines in satellite pictures when you are looking for them. And unsettling.
After about 5 years of no noticeable earthquakes, we've felt 5 or 6 minor quakes in the past year, all within about 15 miles of the house. Hmmm…
