With major earthquakes striking three continents since 2010, there is speculation about where the next big one will be. Since they all occurred along the 40,000km horseshoe-shaped area called the 'Ring of Fire', there is some speculation that it was caused by a domino effect - that is, the one in Chile triggered the one in New Zealand, which in turn, caused the one in Japan.

The question weighing on everyone's mind now is - Will Japan's recent earthquake trigger a big tremor on North America's west coast? 'Not necessarily,' say the geophysicists from the U.S. Geological Survey in Menlo Park, California.

It is widely known that when an earthquake occurs it sends a ripple effect around the world. A 2008 study done by geologists Tim Parsons and Jian Lin had revealed that those waves which can circle the globe many times, are capable of causing lots of tiny trembles - Leading some people to infer that one big earthquake could have a domino effect in other areas of the world.

To try determine if this could really happen, the duo recently conducted a second round of research - this time however, they narrowed their focus to the 200 earthquakes of magnitude 7.0 or higher, that have occurred in the last 30 years.

What their findings revealed, is exactly what is going on in Japan and Chile, following their recent tremors - that is, while there is a domino effect, the large quakes are confined to an area of about 600 miles around the epicenter. Though repercussions are felt at distances further than that - like say from Japan to California, they are all relatively minor - measuring in at below 5.0 in magnitude.

The researcher's conclusion? "If California is ready to go, it’s because California is ready to go, - Not because an earthquake in California would be triggered by Japan" - We for one hope neither that California, nor any other area, is ready to go, for a long long time.

Resources:USnews.com, eslkevin.wordpress.com