Clipmarks | invictus's 'earthquake' clips

China Earthquake was "Rare And Unexpected"

Sat, 05 Jul 2008 03:25:37 GMT

clipped by: invictus

A new analysis of the setting for last month's devastating earthquake in China by a team of geoscientists at MIT shows that the quake resulted from faults with little seismic activity, and that similar events in that area occur only once in every 2,000 to 10,000 years, on average.

However, the researchers caution that because earthquakes can sometimes occur in clusters, people should still be wary of another possible large-scale earthquake.

Tags: earthquake, geology

Thousands dead in Chinese quake

Mon, 12 May 2008 14:40:27 GMT

clipped by: invictus

Clip Source: news.bbc.co.uk

Between 3,000 and 5,000 people may have been killed by an earthquake measuring 7.8 in just one county of south-western China's Sichuan province, reports say.

Some 10,000 people are also feared to have been injured in Beichuan county.

Desperate efforts are under way to find survivors. One school that collapsed has buried an estimated 900 students.

President Hu Jintao has urged "all-out" efforts to rescue victims of the quake, which hit 92km (57 miles) from Chengdu, Sichuan's provincial capital.

The quake was felt as far away as Beijing, he says, meaning millions of people will feel connected to the disaster and will be watching TV screens closely to see how the government responds.

Tags: earthquake, china

Unearthing clues of catastrophic earthquakes

Thu, 17 Apr 2008 17:38:34 GMT

clipped by: invictus
clipper's remarks:

There is still much to be known about ancient earthquakes. The instrumental record for seismology is short, going back 100 years. The historical seismology record is a much longer, including written documentation such as news accounts and diaries, which vary widely by culture and region. The archeoseismic record serves as the bridge between historical accounts and the paleoseismic record of Earth’s history.

Clip Source: www.eurekalert.org

The destruction and disappearance of ancient cultures mark the history of human civilization, making for fascinating stories and cautionary tales. The longevity of today’s societies may depend upon separating fact from fiction, and archeologists and seismologists are figuring out how to join forces to do just that with respect to ancient earthquakes, as detailed in new studies presented at the international conference of the Seismological Society of America.

Archaeoseismology, a young scientific discipline that studies past earthquakes in the archaeological record, allows scientists to broaden the time window to detect these rare seismic catastrophic events. But archaeological evidence for past earthquakes raises a lot of reservations from seismologists, some of them strongly questioning whether man-made structures can be used as earthquake indicators at all.

Tags: archaeology, seismology, ancient earthquakes, catastrophes, science

Largest recorded quake hits Norway

Thu, 21 Feb 2008 16:45:11 GMT

clipped by: invictus
clipper's remarks:

There were no immediate reports of damage, possibly because virtually all buildings in Longyearbyen are built on pilings driven into the permafrost, which can withstand more shaking than conventional foundations.

Clip Source: news.yahoo.com

OSLO, Norway - A magnitude-6.2 earthquake, the largest ever recorded on Norwegian territory, hit off the Arctic Svalbard islands early Thursday, the national seismic monitoring center said. No casualties or damage were reported.

The quake could have been catastrophic if it had hit a more densely populated area, said Conrad Lindholm, senior researcher of the seismic institute NORSAR.

"This is extremely rare," Lindholm said by telephone, adding it was the strongest quake in Norway since it started taking records about a century ago.

Tags: earthquake, norway

Experts warn major Israel quakes fast approaching

Mon, 17 Dec 2007 20:39:06 GMT

clipped by: invictus

Clip Source: news.yahoo.com

LOD, Israel (AFP) - As if political instability and rampant insecurity in the Middle East are not worrying enough, Israeli experts are warning that a major earthquake could strike the region at any time.

Three minor quakes over the past month have served as a reminder that Israel and the West Bank sit atop one of the most sensitive fault lines in the world, where earthquakes have a history of causing havoc.

"We can say with certainty that an earthquake of a magnitude of six on the Richter scale could take place in the coming years," said Yefim Gitterman from the seismology department at the geophysical institute of Lod, near Tel Aviv.

"It can happen tomorrow or in years to come," he said. "Statistically, there is a major quake every 80 years."

Tags: earthquake, israel, middle east

7.4 earthquake shakes the Caribbean

Thu, 29 Nov 2007 21:50:32 GMT

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Clip Source: news.bbc.co.uk

A strong earthquake measuring 7.4 magnitude has hit near the island of Martinique in the eastern Caribbean, the US Geological Survey has said.

The earthquake struck at 1500 (1900 GMT) off the north-west coast of Martinique at a depth of 145.4 kilometers (90.4 miles)

No casualties have been reported and no major tsunami warning has been given.

There have been unconfirmed reports that some buildings have collapsed in Martinique's capital, Fort-de-France.

There were also reports that the islands of Guadeloupe and Dominica had felt the quake strongly.

The tremor was felt hundreds of miles away in South America. In the Venezuelan capital, Caracas, some people evacuated office buildings, Reuters news agency reported.

Tags: earthquake, caribbean, martinique

7.7 quake hits Chile

Wed, 14 Nov 2007 17:43:52 GMT

clipped by: invictus

Clip Source: news.bbc.co.uk

Earthquake aftermath

A powerful 7.7-magnitude quake has hit northern Chile, knocking out power and damaging buildings.

The quake, 60km (37 miles) deep, was centred on the village of Quillahua, about 100km north-west of Calama town, said a presidential spokesman.

It caused panic and toppled power and phone lines, but there were no early reports of injuries.

US officials warned the quake could trigger a tsunami, but Chilean authorities played down the risk.

"It was horribly strong. It was very long and there was a lot of underground noise," Andrea Riveros, a hotel worker in Calama, told news agency AP.

The quake, which struck at 1243 local time (1543 GMT), could reportedly be felt strongly in the capital Santiago, 1,260km to the south.

Tags: earthquake, chile

Second strong quake hits Sumatra

Thu, 13 Sep 2007 11:21:12 GMT

clipped by: invictus

Clip Source: news.bbc.co.uk

Hundreds of buildings were damaged by the tremors

Another powerful earthquake has hit the Indonesian island of Sumatra, a day after the world's strongest tremor so far this year caused extensive damage.

At least nine people were killed and many buildings damaged. But the full scale of the impact has yet to emerge.

Tsunami warnings were repeatedly issued and lifted, as many people ran inland fearing a repeat of the 2004 tsunami.

Thursday's magnitude-7.8 quake hit the same area in southern Sumatra as the tremor of 8.4 on Wednesday.

"Many buildings collapsed after this morning's [Thursday's] quake. We're still trying to find out about victims," Padang Mayor Fauzi Bahar told a local radio station.

Casualties appear to be lower than first feared, but officials warn that bad communications may be hiding the scale of the impact.

Tags: earthquake, indonesia, sumatra

Powerful quake shakes Indonesia

Wed, 12 Sep 2007 13:33:06 GMT

clipped by: invictus

Clip Source: news.bbc.co.uk

A powerful earthquake has struck off the western Indonesian island of Sumatra, triggering a tsunami alert.

The tremor had a magnitude of 7.9, according to the Indonesian Meteorological Institute.

It caused buildings in the capital, Jakarta, to sway, and was felt in other parts of the region. There are no reports of damage or casualties.

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre issued a tsunami alert for the entire Indian Ocean region following the latest quake.

It says it is not known whether a tsunami has been generated.

Wednesday's earthquake struck at 1810 (1110 GMT), about 15km (nine miles) under the sea, some 100km (60 miles) south-west of the city of Bengkulu, the US Geological Survey said.

The BBC's Lucy Williamson in Jakarta says this was the most powerful earthquake in Indonesia since the one which caused the Asian tsunami in 2004, and was dangerously shallow.

Tags: earthquake, indonesia, sumatra

Earthquake in Peru kills hundreds

Thu, 16 Aug 2007 17:47:13 GMT

clipped by: invictus
clipper's remarks: A 7.9 magnitude quake shook Peru today, with aftershocks coming as big as 6.3. News agencies report a high casualty: hundreds were killed and at least 1300 were injured.

Clip Source: news.yahoo.com

CHINCHA, Peru (Reuters) - Powerful aftershocks shook Peru on Thursday as rescuers pulled wounded and dead from collapsed homes and churches a day after a massive earthquake killed hundreds of people.

Hospitals were overwhelmed with injured in the cities of Chincha and Pisco on the Pacific coast, and dead bodies were gathered on street corners in Pisco.

Peru's civil defense agency said at least 337 people perished and 1,300 were injured in the 7.9-magnitude quake and the death toll was expected to rise.

The U.S. Geological Survey reported aftershocks of magnitude 6.0 and 6.3 on Thursday morning near the central Peru coast.

Wounded people lay on the floor in the San Jose hospital in Chincha, south of the capital Lima. Television images showed walls in the hospital destroyed by the quake.

In the San Juan de Dios hospital in Pisco, doctor Ricardo Cabrera said staff was struggling to cope with 200 wounded and more than 40 dead, with no power and a large part of the hospital damaged.

Tags: earthquake, peru, disasters

Indonesian quake could trigger volcanic activity

Thu, 09 Aug 2007 14:28:16 GMT

clipped by: invictus

Clip Source: news.yahoo.com

JAKARTA (AFP) - A powerful 7.5-magnitude earthquake that shook Indonesia's main island of Java early Thursday, including the capital Jakarta, could trigger activity at some of the island's many volcanoes, experts said.

The undersea quake, centred about 110 kilometres (70 miles) east of the capital Jakarta and off the north coast of Java, occurred just after midnight (1700 GMT), rattling buildings and sending panicked residents onto the streets.

"We are closely monitoring Mount Ceremai and Mount Slamet," Surono, head of the energy ministry's Volcanology Centre told Elshinta radio, referring to two volcanoes on densely populated Java.

"If the pressure at the volcanoes is quite high, it may trigger volcanic activity," he said.

The Meteorology and Geophysics Agency said the probability of such an event however was low.

Tags: volcanoes, indonesia, earthquake

Quake leaves 2,000 homeless in Russia

Fri, 03 Aug 2007 11:22:49 GMT

clipped by: invictus

Clip Source: news.yahoo.com

Quake leaves 2,000 homeless in Russia

MOSCOW - About 2,000 people have moved to tent camps in a Russian village where a powerful earthquake left apartment buildings in ruins, officials said Friday.

The 6.4-magnitude quake struck Thursday on the southern tip of Sakhalin island, just north of Japan. It generated small tsunami waves in northern Japan, and a second quake of magnitude 5.9 struck a few hours later.

Worst hit was the port town of Nevelsk, home to 17,300 people. One woman died when the roof of the town's Palace of Culture collapsed. A man there died of a heart attack. Twelve people remained hospitalized Friday, said Olga Shekhovtseva, a spokeswoman for the regional emergency agency.

Tent camps were set up for about 2,000 people forced to move out of 31 apartment buildings that were badly damaged, some of them beyond repair, the spokeswoman said. About 200 children were sent away to summer camps.

Tags: earthquake, russia

Nuclear scare after Japan quake

Mon, 16 Jul 2007 21:17:26 GMT

clipped by: invictus

Clip Source: news.bbc.co.uk

Nuclear scare after Japan quake

Clouds of smoke poured from the Kashiwazaki nuclear power plant

A strong earthquake in central Japan has damaged a large nuclear power plant causing a leak of radioactive material, officials at the plant have said.

A small amount of water containing radioactive substances leaked into the sea, officials said, and a fire broke out at the plant in Kashiwazaki.

At least seven people were killed and hundreds injured in the earthquake.

Several hours later a second earthquake of magnitude 6.6 struck in the sea off Kyoto in western Japan.

Tokyo Electric Power Company said the small amount of radioactive material that leaked into the sea posed no environmental risk.

Reactors at the plant automatically shut during the magnitude 6.8 quake.

Tags: earthquake, environment, japan

Japan quake killed 5, injured hundreds

Mon, 16 Jul 2007 12:20:44 GMT

clipped by: invictus

Clip Source: news.yahoo.com

5 killed, hundreds hurt in Japan quake

KASHIWAZAKI, Japan - A strong earthquake struck northwestern Japan on Monday, destroying hundreds of homes, buckling roads and bridges and causing a fire at a nuclear power plant. At least five people were killed and hundreds were injured.

The quake hit the region shortly after 10 a.m. local time and was centered off the coast of Niigata state. Buildings swayed 160 miles away in Tokyo. The hardest-hit area appeared to be Kashiwazaki, a city of about 90,000 in Niigata

Japan's Meteorological Agency measured the quake at a 6.8 magnitude. The U.S. Geological Survey, which monitors quakes around the world, said it registered 6.7.

Tags: earthquake, japan

The wave that may have destroyed Crete

Fri, 11 May 2007 16:30:11 GMT

clipped by: invictus
clipper's remarks: Finally, more evidence comes about the disasters that caused the Minoan civilization to collapse (and many more to be shaken in the Old World) more than 3500 years ago.

Clip Source: www.stonepages.com

The legend of Atlantis may be more than just a myth. Research on the Greek island of Crete suggests Europe's earliest civilisation was destroyed by a giant tsunami. Until about 3,500 years ago, the Minoan civilisation was flourishing in the Eastern Mediterranean. But around 1500 BCE the people who spawned the myths of the Minotaur and the Labyrinth abruptly disappeared. Now the mystery of their cataclysmic end may finally have been solved. A group of scientists have uncovered new evidence that the island of Crete was hit by a massive tsunami at the same time that Minoan culture disappeared.

Tags: archaeology, aegean, minos, minoan, disasters, tsunami, ancient history, minoan collapse, crete, earthquake