- Chuck Oates
17 November 2011
15 November 2011
1962-11-xx, Austin Jr. High (Amarillo) Grizzly Gazette Issue
A blast from the past: see https://picasaweb.google.com/cloates/196211XxAustinJrHighAmarilloGrizzlyGazetteIssue?authuser=0&feat=directlink for the Thanksgiving issue of the Stephen F. Austin Junior High School newspaper, the Grizzly Gazette. Woody Berry and I were the co-editors for the paper that year, but I spend most (all?) of my time doing photography for the paper.
2011-11-13, Visit to Chickasaw Cultural Center
The Chickasaw Culture Center at Sulphur, Oklahoma, recently opened in July 2011, is well worth a visit. See https://picasaweb.google.com/cloates/20111113VisitToChickasawCulturalCenter?authuser=0&feat=directlink for *lots* of pics and videos.
06 November 2011
2011-11-05, Earthquake!
Today, Central Oklahoma experienced its strongest earthquake in recorded history, a 5.6 magnitude earthquake, approximately 3.1 miles deep, with the epicenter near Sparks, Oklahoma, east northeast of Oklahoma City. Here's how it felt in Norman.
We're all fine, if a little unnerved. This quake was a lot different from the one several weeks ago. That one was two loud bangs with the sensation that, perhaps, a truck had hit the house, and that was it.
This one was preceded by what sounded like distant thunder, and then the house started wobbling around all over the place. I was rared back in my lounge chair, and had the sensation that I was in a boat that was bobbing and wobbling. This lasted for several tens of seconds. All the suspended lamp fixtures and things like grandfather (long case) clock weights swung fairly widely, as if the Jolly Green Giant were pushing back and forth on the house. All the swinging objects didn't settle down until a good five minutes after the wobbling quit.
Some masonry walls at Sparks, OK, near the epicenter of the quake, fell, and a good many were cracked badly. As far as I know, there was little, if any, damage in the Edmond-OKC-Norman corridor along I-35.
Just another wild weekend in a year of extremes in Oklahoma, where extremes are the norm! This year has been pretty extreme, though, even for Oklahoma.
(See News 9 TV weather forecaster Michael Armstrong's tweet, copied below. Oh, and he forgot to mention the record 63 days of over-100° F [38° C] this summer. I'm keeping an eye out for the locusts. I'll let you know!)
_________________________
From www.twitter.com/wxmic , Michael Armstrong:
"2011 in OK: coldest temp, most snow in 24 hrs, highest wind speed, EF5 tornado, largest hail and now strongest earthquake. Up next: Locusts."
_________________________
(Answer to Sherry's inquiry about after-shocks)
This *was* an after-shock. There had been a magnitude 4.7 quake with an epicenter near Prague, Oklahoma yesterday morning a little after 2 a.m. I didn't wake up for that one, but my dogs did. They were really excited and would have nothing other than a trip outside to investigate. (That's their job, I guess.) There were, I believe, 38 much smaller after-shocks through the day yesterday, culminating in the magnitude 5.6 quake last night. I haven't heard about any more after-shocks. Maybe the fault has relieved all its built-up strain, but who knows.
This one was preceded by what sounded like distant thunder, and then the house started wobbling around all over the place. I was rared back in my lounge chair, and had the sensation that I was in a boat that was bobbing and wobbling. This lasted for several tens of seconds. All the suspended lamp fixtures and things like grandfather (long case) clock weights swung fairly widely, as if the Jolly Green Giant were pushing back and forth on the house. All the swinging objects didn't settle down until a good five minutes after the wobbling quit.
Some masonry walls at Sparks, OK, near the epicenter of the quake, fell, and a good many were cracked badly. As far as I know, there was little, if any, damage in the Edmond-OKC-Norman corridor along I-35.
Just another wild weekend in a year of extremes in Oklahoma, where extremes are the norm! This year has been pretty extreme, though, even for Oklahoma.
(See News 9 TV weather forecaster Michael Armstrong's tweet, copied below. Oh, and he forgot to mention the record 63 days of over-100° F [38° C] this summer. I'm keeping an eye out for the locusts. I'll let you know!)
_________________________
From www.twitter.com/wxmic , Michael Armstrong:
"2011 in OK: coldest temp, most snow in 24 hrs, highest wind speed, EF5 tornado, largest hail and now strongest earthquake. Up next: Locusts."
_________________________
(Answer to Sherry's inquiry about after-shocks)
This *was* an after-shock. There had been a magnitude 4.7 quake with an epicenter near Prague, Oklahoma yesterday morning a little after 2 a.m. I didn't wake up for that one, but my dogs did. They were really excited and would have nothing other than a trip outside to investigate. (That's their job, I guess.) There were, I believe, 38 much smaller after-shocks through the day yesterday, culminating in the magnitude 5.6 quake last night. I haven't heard about any more after-shocks. Maybe the fault has relieved all its built-up strain, but who knows.
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