Abstract

For decades an enigma has persisted about the lunar phase during major quakes on the Parkfield segment of the San Andreas Fault. The lunar phases at the time of the quakes cluster with high statistical significance 45 degrees prior to full and new moon. There are no local tidal maximums or minimums at these times nor is the earth as a whole contorted into an extreme shape. The earth?s moment of inertia is also not at an extreme. This phenomenon has no explanation within the accepted theory of plate tectonics. It has been the motivation for many wild conjectures including totally new theories of gravity. As it turns out, the explanation may be much more mundane (pun intended). When the moon is at these positions, the tidal bulges are the furthest from the moon and the torque that the moon exerts perpendicular to the earth?s axis is maximized. This coincidence can now be viewed as consistent with all of the main alternatives to plate tectonics: surge tectonics, pulsating earth, angular momentum theories, and especially earth expansion.