This unusual meteorological phenomenon, causing tremors and the sound of an explosion, is sometimes mistaken for an earthquake. It occurs in the event of a sudden drop in temperature.
Shocks caused by the cold. In the United States, cryoseisms were recorded this week in the northeast of the country, currently affected by freezing cold. An unusual meteorological phenomenon, called “frost quake” in English, which occurs during a sudden drop in temperature.
“We are reporting tremors in the region. These are cryoseisms. Like earthquakes, they generate tremors and an impression of thunder”, indicates on Twitter NWS Caribou, the national weather service of this Maine city.
These sounds were accompanied by the sensation of shaking and sometimes cracks appearing in the ground covered with ice.
A sudden drop in temperature
This unusual weather phenomenon is associated with “extreme cold episodes”, according to the site AccuWeather.
“Cryoseisms occur when saturated ground freezes rapidly after a period of mild or slightly above freezing temperatures,” the US Meteorological Institute continues.
“The result causes cracking of the ground and rocks,” says NBC Newsadding that this type of event usually occurs in the northern United States or Canada.
Down to -31°C
Temperatures in the state of Maine have dropped sharply in recent days, reaching a level not seen in the region for decades, according to the Press Herald.
The thermometer fell to around -25°C overnight in Portland, Maine, close to the record of -26°C dating from 1957, according to the local newspaper. It was -27°C in Augusta and -31°C in Greenville, two other localities in this state.
“It’s one of the worst colds we’ve ever had,” said meteorologist Nathaniel Clark in Caribou, where the mercury dropped to -29°C, with a feeling of -46°C due to the wind.
The eastern United States and Canada have been hit for several days by a historic polar cold coming from the Arctic. New England is particularly affected.
