Scientists have confirmed that some earthquakes in Texas were caused by human activity. With the help of radar satellites, scientists have obtained data that has identified five man-made earthquakes in the southern U.S. state.

By tracking movements and patterns on the ground, the radar detected that wastewater injections, which are produced from drilling for gas and oil, have contributed to creating man-made earthquakes.

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According to the co-author of the study, William Ellsworth from Stanford University, the radar method used in this new study is a new way to identify and detect man-made earthquakes.

The Stanford team examined two sets of oil wells located in the eastern and western regions of Texas. Satellite radar data revealed that shallow wells in eastern Texas are not causing these ground disturbances. However, western wells that are high in volume were identified to be the culprit behind these earthquakes.

Ellsworth explained that when wastewater injections were significantly decreased, shaking in the ground also stopped. This has also been observed in Kansas and Oklahoma.

This type of data is a reliable way to complement ground measurements, according to a seismologist at Cornell University, who was not part of the study. 

The team says that these man-made earthquakes have stopped. However, they revealed how the area was shaken "pretty thoroughly" for an 18 month period.

This new study has revealed that five earthquakes in the state that occurred between 2012 and 2013 were caused by human activities. The team is conducting further research to find a solution to these man-made earthquakes.

This study has been published in the journal Science.