Earth will become positioned between Venus and Uranus and the gravitational tug from each planet could cause a potentially civilisation ending earthquake. This is according to ‘New-age earthquake forecasting’ website Ditrianum, run by researcher Frank Hoogerbeets, who said an earthquake which is almost a magnitude NINE on the richter scale will hit. The gravitational pull of the celestial bodies either side of our planet could pull on Earth’s tectonic plates, according to the prediction.
As the plates are tugged apart, they could cause earthquakes around the globe – most likely to hit on December 9 or 10.
Writing on his website, Mr Hoogerbeets said: “Exceptional critical planetary geometry may trigger large seismic activity from the 7th to the 10th of December, possibly peaking 7.8 to 8.8 magnitude.
“A smaller peak on the 11th may also indicate larger seismic activity from the 11th to the 13th, possibly peaking high 6 to 7 magnitude.
“Estimates based on the planetary data indicate that the 9th-10th of December are the most likely days for a great earthquake.”
A magnitude 8.8 earthquake could literally cause the ground to crack and would leave few buildings standing, according to the Seismology Research Centre.
Mr Hoogerbeets made the prediction using his Solar System Geometry Index (SSGI) which “is the computation of a dataset for a specific time-frame of values given to specific geometric positions of the planets, the Moon and the Sun”.
He added: “After three years of observations, it became clear that some planetary geometry in the Solar System clearly tends to cause a seismic increase, while other geometry does not.”
But experts have dismissed Mr Hoogerbeets’ claims, saying that there is no way earthquakes can be predicted.
John Bellini, a geophysicist at the US Geological Survey (USGS) has said: “We can’t predict or forecast earthquakes.
“Sometimes before a large earthquake you’ll have a foreshock or two, but we don’t know they’re foreshocks until the big one happens.”