Taylor Swift fans set off earthquake monitors at Edinburgh concert

Taylor Swift concerts are well known for fresh three-hour set lists, whopping costume changes and huge sellout crowds – but now they can be measured by something else: seismic* activity.

After concertgoers made the earth move at Taylor Swift gigs in Seattle and Los Angeles last year, Swifties have done it again — this time during the 34-year-old’s Edinburgh* leg of her Eras Tour.

Fans literally shook it off – but not because of Scotland’s cold weather – during her three shows last weekend, with earthquake monitoring stations detecting seismic activity from 6km away.

The most intense activity was recorded during three songs: Cruel Summer, Ready For It? and Champagne Problems.

The Friday night crowd was the loudest of the three gigs, with the 73,000 who attended that evening making the ground move a maximum of 23.4 nanometres (nm), compared to 22.8nm and 23.3nm on the Saturday and Sunday respectively.

According to the British Geological* Survey (BGS), the UK’s national earthquake monitoring agency, the seismic activity was mainly caused by dancing and reached its peak at 160bpm during Ready For It?

Swifties created approximately 80kW of power during the song, equivalent to about 6000 car batteries.

Swift’s previous tour dates in Seattle and Los Angeles registered similar events, with her Seattle gig generating activity equivalent to a 2.3 magnitude* earthquake.

“It’s amazing that we’ve been able to measure the reaction of thousands of concertgoers remotely through our data,” said BGS seismologist* Callum Harrison.

“The opportunity to explore a seismic activity created by a different kind of phenomenon* has been a thrill.

“Clearly Scotland’s reputation for providing some of the most enthusiastic audiences remains well intact!”

Swift put on a brave show as she performed through freezing temperatures of between 8-10C in Scotland last weekend, where residents are yet to see signs of their hotly anticipated northern summer.

POLL

GLOSSARY

• seismic: relating to or caused by an earthquake
• Edinburgh: capital city of Scotland in the United Kingdom
• geological: study of rocks and similar substances that make up the earth’s surface
• magnitude: the size of the earthquake, which is measured on the Richter scale
• seismologist: scientist who studies the sudden, violent movement earth caused by earthquakes
• phenomenon: observable fact or event, something that happens that can be seen and felt

EXTRA READING

Ta ta, Tay Tay: Swift kids cherish keepsakes as star leaves Oz

Biggest Taiwan quake in 25 years

Aussie star beats Taylor Swift to Spotify Crown

QUICK QUIZ

1. In which two American cities did Taylor Swift concertgoers make the earth move last year?
2. Earthquake monitors detected seismic activity at what distance from the concert?
3. In which city was Swift performing at the time?
4. The most intense activity was recorded during Swift’s performance of which three songs?
5. How much power did Swifties create and what was it approximately equivalent to?

LISTEN TO THIS STORY

CLASSROOM ACTIVITIES
Amazing headlines
Create three amazing headlines that could be used for a story about the seismic activity caused by Swift’s fans. Each of your three headings should use the following literary devices:

• Alliteration
• Hyperbole
• Puns

Time: allow 20 minutes to complete this activity
Curriculum Links: English

2. Extension
Use your imagination to think of 10 other events that could be featured in a story about unexpected or funny things that made the earth move.

Time: allow 15 minutes to complete this activity
Curriculum Links: English

VCOP ACTIVITY
Imaginative dialogue
Imagine you were there during the Edinburgh concert.

Create a conversation between two Swifties – you may need or want to include yourself as one of the characters. Don’t forget to try to use facts and details from the article to help make your dialogue as realistic as possible.

Go through your writing and highlight any punctuation you have used in green. Make sure you carefully check the punctuation used for the dialogue and ensure you have opened and closed the speaking in the correct places.