Author and researcher Mitch Battros talked about earthquakes and earth changes. The recent series of quakes off Mexico that were felt in Phoenix and San Diego could be a precursor to a larger event, he said. He expects a big quake somewhere along the Cascadia subduction zone which runs from Northern California to Alaska, as well as possible seismic activity in the Puerto Rico Trench, which could cause tsunamis along the East Coast. A large quake in the Cascadia zone could set off new faults or a chain reaction triggering activity in locations as far away as the New Madrid Fault, he commented.

Battros said he tracks the sun and Moon in making quake predictions, and earth change analysis. While Solar Cycle 24 has been very quiet, he expects activity to pick up and actually be stronger than Cycle 23 at times, with short but powerful X Class flares hitting during 2011-2012. An advocate for disaster preparedness, he's set up this page with survival tips.

During the third hour, geologist Jim Berkland and quake sensitive Cal Orey joined the discussion. Berkland noted that in parts of the country, we were seeing one of the coolest summers on record. He cited the upcoming seismic window of August 18-25th as a time we'd see quake activity along the West Coast and/or the Ring of Fire. Orey said she was sensing pending activity, and would be surprised if there wasn't a quake in California this August.

SETI & Space Update

First hour guest, SETI senior astronomer Seth Shostak shared updates on projects and space news. SETI's Allen Telescope Array is currently looking at the center of the galaxy, he noted. Announcements about NASA's Kepler space telescope, which is searching for exoplanets, are coming soon, he added.