Seems like it is earthquake season in the world… After a massive earthquake of magnitude 8.2 which hit Chile on the 1st of April, leading to a tsunami and massive destruction, a quake of magnitude 7.5 struck Papua New Guinea on Saturday, 19th April, sending a brief tsunami warning across the nation. Prior to this, another strong earthquake had hit Mexico on Friday, measuring 7.2 on the Richter scale. Let's find more on these disasters and there possible cause:
New Guinea
The quake, at a depth of 10 km, struck 68 km southwest of Panguna on the island of Bougainville. Over six strong tremors had been felt near Bougainville in the past one week, including a magnitude 7.3 on April 11. These quakes however, did not cause any damage. Though, the tsunami alert in the Pacific nation was lifted shortly after it was issued, seismologists are calling this activity unusual, indicating towards a return of another strong earthquake in the country. Jolts were felt locally but there were no reports of significant damage from remote and isolated Bougainville. Since April 11, 45 earthquakes of magnitude 4.5 or greater have occurred in the nearby regions.
In 1998, a magnitude 7 earthquake triggered a tsunami that smashed into villages near Aitape on Papua New Guinea's north coast and killed more than 2,000 people.
Mexico
An earthquake magnitude 7.2, rumbled into the city of Mexico on Friday as terrified people ran out of homes and hotels. According to the U.S. Geological Survey the quake hit at about 9:30 a.m (1430 GMT) and was centered at Chilpancingo, capital of the southern state of Guerrero. Mexicans vacationing for the Easter holiday were frightened by the aftershocks in Acapulco, a Pacific resort.
Several walls collapsed and were left with large cracks. Debris covered sidewalks in almost half a dozen cities across Mexico. Seismologists Guerrero has the potential to produce quakes as strong as magnitude 8.4. In 1985, an earthquake of magnitude 8.1 killed 9,500 people and devastated large sections of Mexico City. As a result, Mexico created the world's first quake warning system that alerted the public, enacting it even before quake-prone Japan did.
Earthquake and Climate Change
With earthquakes becoming more common, researchers around the world are beginning to draw its link to a rise in climate change. Growing bodies of research believe earthquakes could be a part of climate change, claiming that as the massive sheets of ice and glaciers melt, tectonic plates shift. Today as we are witnessing warming and rising sea levels at an unprecedented rate, fault lines are able to move more easily, making earthquakes more possible and common.
Earthquakes with magnitudes between 7.0 and 7.9 are classified by USGS as ‘major’. ‘Great’ earthquakes measure 8.0 and up on the Richter scale.
Two of the strongest earthquakes in India reported in history have been in Gujarat and Kashmir in 2001 and 2005 respectively. The Gujarat earthquake measured 7.7 on the Richter scale, while in Kashmir it was reported to be 7.5.
Photo by symonsez.
