Seneca Guns

---

Context 

The phenomenon of loud noises most similar to that of a thunder or a cannon being shot is termed as Seneca Guns. It may cause tremors on land similar to earthquake. For more than 150 years, they are being heard in the parts of coastal North Carolina. Recently scientists are using seismic data to pinpoint where the explosions come from and what causes them. The findings were presented at the American Geophysical Union.

About Seneca Guns 

• The phenomenon of loud noises most similar to that of a thunder or a cannon being shot is termed as Seneca Guns. Till date, the reason for the occurrence of Seneca Guns is unknown. 

• It derives its name from the Lake Seneca in New York that witnessed Civil War battle and gun sounds are very commonly heard. 

• They can very loud and have impacts like shaking and rattling of houses, damage to window panes etc. 

• These sounds are often heard in the coastal areas and they are missing in the seas. These sounds have been heard prominently in the regions around North Carolina.

• Seneca Guns are also called Skyquakes. Skyquakes has also been reported in the banks of river Ganges in Himachal Pradesh. 

• The other places where the Seneca Guns have been reported are Japan, Australia, Italy, Norway, Brazil, Mexico, Uruguay, Myanmar, and Java Islands of Indonesia.

Possible causes of Seneca Guns are:

• Collapse of underwater cave which causes the air to raise rapidly to the earth’s surface. 

• Volcanic Eruptions. 

• In North Carolina, it is believed that the sound is generated from collapsing of the continental shelf into the Atlantic Abyss. 

• In some cases, the Seneca Guns have also been associated with earthquakes.

• Researchers have suggested that the sound could be originated from fast approaching outer space object’s explosion once it enters earth’s atmosphere or due to crash of ocean waves. But none of the hypotheses have been scientifically proved.