[ad_1]
Last Thursday, a magnitude 6.4 earthquake struck California near the city of Ridgecrest, about 240 kilometers northeast of Los Angeles. The earthquake occurred at a depth of about 11 kilometers (7 miles). This considerable earthquake turned out to be a lifejacket.
The next day at 20:19 local time, a magnitude 7.1 earthquake affected about the same area, but at a much lower depth (only 0.9 km / 0.56 miles). This earthquake has been the most powerful in California over the past 20 years and has also been felt in neighboring Nevada and Mexico. Houses and roads were damaged, with some "minor to moderate" injuries but no deaths.
Scientists from the United States Geological Survey (USGS) estimated that there was less than a 1% chance that one or more aftershocks would be equal to or more powerful than the magnitude 7.1 earthquake. About 55 to 120 aftershocks of a magnitude greater than 3 will probably be felt near Ridgecrest during the following week.
When forecasts were released over the weekend, the USGS had recorded 359 quakes of magnitude 3 or greater. Five of them were greater than magnitude 5, powerful enough to damage buildings and infrastructure.
–
Since the initial earthquake, nearly 5,000 additional earthquakes have been recorded in the region. Although the vast majority of them can be detected only with seismometers, scientists and locals closely monitor anything that could be bigger and more dangerous. At the end of the seismic swarm, six times more tremors could be recorded.
"No one can predict the exact time or place of an earthquake, including aftershocks. Our earthquake forecasts give us an idea of the chances of having more earthquakes during a given period in the affected area. We calculate this earthquake forecast using a statistical badysis based on past earthquakes, "wrote the USGS on its website.
California is located on many different fault systems, the most important being the San Andreas Fault, which extends 1,200 kilometers across the state. Many expect a devastating earthquake, significantly stronger than last week, to end up hitting the state. However, the July 5 earthquake was not a prelude to the Big One or the San Andreas Fault. Instead, this has happened on a different remote fault system.
[H/T: BBC News]
[ad_2]
Source link
