A tectonic weapon is an imaginary tool or system that could cause earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, or other shaking events in specific places by changing the Earth's natural geological processes. In 1992, Aleksey Vsevolodovich Nikolayev, a scientist from the Russian Academy of Sciences, described it as "using energy stored deep inside the Earth to create damaging earthquakes." He also said, "trying to cause an earthquake is very unlikely." No such weapon is known to have been created, but the idea has sometimes been used in fictional stories.

Concept

A tectonic weapon works by storing a large amount of energy in the Earth's crust in an area where tectonic plates are active. This stored energy is released as an earthquake when triggered by a nuclear explosion at the center of the event or by a strong electric pulse.

Nuclear explosions can cause earthquakes within tens of kilometers, but these earthquakes are usually much smaller than the explosion itself. A study examined whether large nuclear tests at the Nevada Test Site caused earthquakes hundreds of kilometers away in California. It found no increase in earthquake activity at the times of the nuclear tests.

In 1968, a one-megaton underground nuclear test called Faultless caused visible movement on the Earth's surface up to 40 kilometers away. The United States Geological Survey reported that the test created new cracks in the ground that were about 1,200 meters long. Some people suggested that a 1998 earthquake in Afghanistan might have been caused by thermonuclear tests in India and Pakistan that occurred two to twenty days earlier. However, the USGS concluded that there is no evidence showing a connection between the nuclear tests and the earthquake. The timing and location of the events were likely a coincidence.

Reports

Roger Clark, a professor of geophysics at Leeds University, wrote in the journal Nature in 1996, responding to a news report about two secret Soviet programs, "Mercury" and "Volcano," designed to create a "tectonic weapon" that could cause earthquakes from far away using electromagnetism. He said, "We don't believe it's impossible or incorrect, but past experiences suggest it's very unlikely." According to Nature, these programs were known to Western geophysicists for several years, though not officially. The Mercury program started in 1987, with three tests in Kyrgyzstan. The last test for the Volcano program happened in 1992.

These weapons, even if they don't exist or can't work, are a concern for government officials. For example, US Secretary of Defense William S. Cohen spoke on April 28, 1997, at a conference at the University of Georgia, saying, "Others are using a form of eco-terrorism that could change the climate, cause earthquakes or volcanic eruptions from far away using electromagnetic waves."

During World War II, New Zealand's Project Seal tried to make a tsunami bomb that could create waves as a weapon. In 1999, reports suggested this weapon might be possible.

Nikola Tesla said a small steam-powered machine he tested in 1898 caused effects similar to earthquakes. However, this has never been repeated. In 2006, the TV show MythBusters tested a small machine using a computer-controlled electromagnetic actuator instead of steam. It created vibrations detectable from hundreds of feet away, but didn't cause major shaking. They concluded that their test showed the myth was not true.

International treaties

The 1978 Convention on the Prohibition of Military or Any Other Hostile Use of Environmental Modification Techniques is an international treaty. Seventy-five states have ratified it, and seventeen more have signed it. The treaty bans the use of environmental modification techniques to cause earthquakes, tsunamis, and other similar events.

Conspiracy theories

After natural events such as the 2010 Haiti earthquake, some people make unfounded claims that link the disasters to the military actions of the United States or the former Soviet Union (USSR). These claims often lack proof. Following the Haiti earthquake, media reports indicated that Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez claimed the disaster was caused by testing of a U.S. weapon that affects tectonic activity, though these claims were not supported by evidence. In 1992, the Russian newspaper Komsomolskaya Pravda reported on page 1 that "a geophysical or tectonic weapon was actually developed in the USSR despite the United Nations Convention," but Major-General V Bochrov, a top seismologist in the USSR Ministry of Defence, firmly denied any connection to such weapons. On 8 February 2023, Romanian Senator Diana Iovanovici Șoșoacă accused the United States of causing the 2023 Turkey–Syria earthquakes using a seismic weapon.

"Earthquake bombs"

The British Tallboy and Grand Slam bombs from World War II were named earthquake bombs because they destroyed strong buildings by shaking their foundations like an earthquake. These bombs were not meant to cause real earthquakes.