Researchers are gaining a new understanding of the San Andreas Fault. Stream channels on the Carrizo Plain in southern California were used to calculate the offset of past earthquakes – yielding some surprising results.
The North Anatolian Fault in Turkey has been accumulating pressure near Istanbul for over two centuries. This article from EARTH Magazine explains what could be in store for the Marmara Sea fault region.
America’s largest shake table is at the University of California, San Diego. This video shows different test structures being shaken about, and explains how more earthquake-resistant buildings are being designed.
“A study of seismic activity near Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport by researchers from SMU and UT-Austin reveals that the operation of a saltwater injection disposal well in the area was a “plausible cause” for the series of small earthquakes that occurred in the area between October 30, 2008, and May 16, 2009.” Quoted from the Southern Methodist University press release.
Chile has been hit by repeated and numerous aftershocks since the 8.8 magnitude earthquake of February 27th. Today a 7.2 aftershock shook large parts of the country.
“The massive magnitude 8.8 earthquake that struck the west coast of Chile last month moved the entire city of Concepcion at least 10 feet to the west, and shifted other parts of South America as far apart as the Falkland Islands and Fortaleza, Brazil. ” Quoted from the Ohio State press release.
That was one of the questions asked of Dr. Michael Blanpied of the USGS Earthquakes Hazard Program in a question and answer session published in the Washington Post.
A magnitude 5.9 earthquake caused over 50 deaths in Turkey in the early hours of March 8. The epicenter was located in the Elazig province, close to the town of Basyurt; heavy damage was suffered by the town of Okcular.
A blog post on the Ground Truth Trekking Blog documents efforts to observe the Chile tsunami in locations such as Petropavlovsk, Kamchatka (Russia) and Seldovia, Alaska.
“The Feb. 27 magnitude 8.8 earthquake in Chile may have shortened the length of each Earth day. JPL research scientist Richard Gross computed how Earth’s rotation should have changed as a result of the Feb. 27 quake. Using a complex model, he and fellow scientists came up with a preliminary calculation that the quake should have shortened the length of an Earth day by about 1.26 microseconds (a microsecond is one millionth of a second). ” Quoted from the NASA release.
Building collapse is one reason why so many people were killed in the Haiti earthquake. An article on the CNN website explores the possibilities of an earthquake proof building.
Mike Blanpied of the United States Geological Survey gives a briefing on the recent Chile earthquake and why that country did not suffer as many deaths as the far less powerful earthquake in Haiti.
Japan placed its eastern coastline on a tsunami alert after the recent magnitude 8.8 earthquake in Chile. Their Meteorological Agency warned that waves up to 10 feet high could hit the shoreline. Hundreds of thousands of people evacuated low areas near the coast. Fortunately the waves were much smaller than anticipated.
The recent magnitude 8.8 earthquake in Chile was the fifth most powerful earthquake since 1900. The most powerful earthquake ever recorded was a 9.5 magnitude event that occurred in Chile in 1960.
Early results from the USGS “Did you feel it?” map shows that this morning’s earthquake in Chile was felt across the southern part of the South American continent.
Lots of news articles related to the earthquake in Chile are starting to appear on the internet. To view headlines from a number of these articles check Google News.
The Pacific Tsunami Center has issued the following warning for the State of Hawaii in response to the 8.8 M earthquake that occurred this morning in Chile.
“A TSUNAMI HAS BEEN GENERATED THAT COULD CAUSE DAMAGE ALONG COASTLINES OF ALL ISLANDS IN THE STATE OF HAWAII. URGENT ACTION SHOULD BE TAKEN TO PROTECT LIVES AND PROPERTY.
A TSUNAMI IS A SERIES OF LONG OCEAN WAVES. EACH INDIVIDUAL WAVE CREST CAN LAST 5 TO 15 MINUTES OR MORE AND EXTENSIVELY FLOOD COASTAL AREAS. THE DANGER CAN CONTINUE FOR MANY HOURS AFTER THE INITIAL WAVE AS SUBSEQUENT WAVES ARRIVE. TSUNAMI WAVE HEIGHTS CANNOT BE PREDICTED AND THE FIRST WAVE MAY NOT BE THE LARGEST. TSUNAMI WAVES EFFICIENTLY WRAP AROUND ISLANDS. ALL SHORES ARE AT RISK NO MATTER WHICH DIRECTION THEY FACE. THE TROUGH OF A TSUNAMI WAVE MAY TEMPORARILY EXPOSE THE SEAFLOOR BUT THE AREA WILL QUICKLY FLOOD AGAIN. EXTREMELY STRONG AND UNUSUAL NEARSHORE CURRENTS CAN ACCOMPANY A TSUNAMI. DEBRIS PICKED UP AND CARRIED BY A TSUNAMI AMPLIFIES ITS DESTRUCTIVE POWER. SIMULTANEOUS HIGH TIDES OR HIGH SURF CAN SIGNIFICANTLY INCREASE THE TSUNAMI HAZARD.”
A massive earthquake occurred along the coast of Chile at 3:34 AM local time. This is a very large earthquake that ruptured the boundary between the Nazca and South American tectonic plates. The USGS instrumental intensity shake map shows severe shaking along the coast of Chile.
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