Sea of Azov Squeeze

As is clear from the Kiev trumpets and the horn of Homel in Belarus, this part of the great Eurasian Plate is pulling apart, a stretch zone. A quick glance at geography shows why. Though the Dniepier River descending from the Ukraine diverts to the Black Sea, and the Volga River descending from Russia diverts to the Caspian Sea, it is clear that both are pointing at the Sea of Azov. The entire region, including the Black Sea, the Caspian Sea, and the rivers feeding them is part of a stretch zone. River channels indicate a weak point in the crust, a point where pulling apart is most likely to happen. As the Sea of Azov is at the tip of this triangle of descending rivers, the stretch is likely to play like a pin-pong game there, a tug and release action at the straits near Taman.

Where most stretch zones are pulled in a single direction, such as the East Coast of the US being pulled directly east toward the Atlantic Rift, stretch zones can compete, and in such cases vibrations occur. Florida is being pulled east and also southwest due to the Caribbean Plate edge lifting at the Gulf, providing an alternate route. Thus, the Tampa Bay howl recently recorded, due to the vibration during competition. In Belarus and the Ukraine, likewise, there is competition, as a complex drama is playing out during the 7 of 10 scenarios. This stretch zone is pulling east, at somewhat of a diagonal toward the southeast as the Eurasian Plate border runs down along Turkey and beneath Iran. At the same time, because the African Plate will be dropping and pulling to the west as it does so, there is a tug in this direction. Thus, the vibrations in Homel and Kiev.

The straits near Taman are actually being pulled in three directions. First southeast along the Eurasian Plate border, then a bounce back to the northwest when the tug releases, then a tug to the southwest when the African Plate tends to drop and move slightly to the west during the African roll, which has already started to a slight degree. Pull a piece of cloth with a hole in the center over some dough, and pull alternately in three different directions, and see what the dough does. As the cloth is pulled in one direction, the cloth is pressed down, and the dough moves away from that spot to the obvious outlet, the hole in the center of the cloth. Likewise for the other directions, so the dough at the center gradually squeezes out. The strait at Taman is clearly a weak point in the crust, equivalent to the hole in the cloth.

ZetaTalk ™ September 3, 2011