Beware of shocks! Small earthquakes caused by spectators at Taylor Swift and Travis Scott’s concerts

Dance until the earth shakes. Seismologists have been studying for many years how thousands of people gathered in one place for a concert can cause seismic activity. By comparing this data, the Seismological Society of America and the New Atlas site had fun establishing a ranking of the artists who most captured the passion and waves of the seismograph.

shivery night in seattle

And, of course, who else but Taylor Swift will once again take pole position? More than 72,000 on July 22 Swifties The Eras Tour gathered at Seattle’s Lumen Field stadium to participate in the concert. Then geology professor Jackie Kaplan-Auerbach’s seismometer recorded seismic activity equivalent to a magnitude 2.3 earthquake. World record, approved by Guinness.

Two weeks later, the Earth shakes again. This time in Rome, during a concert of the unbearable rapper Travis Scott. More than 60,000 people attended the concert at the famous Cirque Maxim, when Kanye West appeared on stage with the star of the evening. The frenzied crowd produced tremors equivalent to a magnitude 1.3 earthquake, according to geophysics researcher Giovanni DiFeria, who based himself on readings from a seismometer located 9 kilometers from the concert venue.

AC/DC blasts the meter at 103 decibels

At the podium, we find country singer Garth Brooks, the song’s author Callin’ Baton Rouge, Became the unofficial anthem of the University of Louisiana, whose campus is located in Baton Rouge. So when the artist played the first note of his song in front of 102,000 people at the city’s Tiger Stadium, the fans screamed with joy so much that the sound reached 95 decibels and caused nearby seismometers to shake.

Bruce Springsteen and the Foo Fighters also feature on the New Atlas list, with a special mention for the AC/DC concert. On December 15, 2015, the Australian group was in Auckland (New Zealand) for a show at 103 Decibels. Enough to be heard at a distance of more than 6 kilometers.

Strangely, Metallica’s concert at Seattle’s Lumen Field stadium caused very little seismic activity. “Metal fans love it head banging, so they don’t necessarily jump, asks Gabriel Tepe of the Caltech Seismology Laboratory. The way they move doesn’t give that strong a signal. » Who doesn’t jump…