5.3 in Central California; Possible San Andreas Earthquake Precursor

Ok folks, it’s SHOWTIME.

For over 20 years geologists have known that the small town of Parkfield, California was the key to the San Andreas fault. More earthquake research has been done in this area than anywhere else in the world. The reason has been that a pattern of repeating medium sized earthquakes was discovered, with a rough 30 year cycle. This made for a perfect place to study earthquake precursors, or those geological events which lead up to these events. In 1857, 1881, 1901, 1922, 1934, 1966 and 2004, earthquakes measuring in the 5.0-6.0 range have occurred in the area.
[link to en.wikipedia.org]

More importantly, was the discovery by Cal-Tech seismologist Kerry Sieh, (published 1978; Bulletin of the Seismological Society of America) stating that foreshocks to the 1857 San Andreas 7.9 in Southern California were felt at 1, 2, and 4 hours before the main shock, LOCATED IN THE PARKFIELD AREA. Parkfield is now considered the point at which the 1857 quake began, destabilizing the faultline, and which actually ruptured some 100 miles south on the morning of Jan. 9th, 1857. The strike-slip movement of the largest California quake of the last 200 years moved the faultline at least 18 feet, from San Bernardino to Parkfield, covering 220 miles.
[link to en.wikipedia.org]
[link to earthquake.usgs.gov]

At midnight last night a 5.3 earthquake hit 10 miles north of Parkfield.
[link to www.foxnews.com]

I would like to point out that it’s only been 8 years since the 2004 6.0, so this is clearly NOT part of the normal pattern observed over the past 155 years. With the earthquake swarm south of the Salton Sea and the Sulfur smell last month in L.A. I'd say we are looking at the very real possibility that THIS IS IT.

Precursor to the Big One? We’ll know within a few days.