Earthquakes
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Alarm Clock

5.3 magnitude earthquake shakes New Zealand North Island


RT
Sun, 01 Nov 2015 06:11 UTC
earthquake in New Zealand
© usgs.gov
A 5.3 magnitude earthquake has struck 25km of the town of Waiouru in New Zealand, USGS reported. The quake was felt in several other cities across the centre of North island, local press reported.

The quake took place 79km from the town of Taradale and 82km from Hastings.

The European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre defined the quake depth at 55km.

The earthquake took place 230 km from the country's capital of Wellington.

North Island residents have shared posts on social media, saying the earthquake was a strong one.

"It just about [shook] me off the chair. A swaying motion, and the whole house creaked, and one of my photos came off the wall," a resident in the town of Waitara told local Newstalk ZB radio.

New Zealand, located on the eastern edge of the Australia plate, is considered one of the most sesimically active areas of the world. It has high rates of convergence between the Australia and Pacific plates.
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Attention

Magnitude 4.3 earthquake hits Lima, Peru

Hillary Ojeda
Living in Peru
Thu, 29 Oct 2015 15:09 UTC
Image
© El Comercio/USIThe quake epicenter was recorded 4 km south of Cajatambo.
An earthquake of magnitude 4.3 grades on the Richter scale struck Lima last night, according to a report by the Geophysical Institute of Peru (IGP, Spanish acronym).

The epicenter was recorded 4 km south of the province of Cajatambo and hit at approximately 11:02 p.m. IGP reports it had a depth of 100 kilometers with an intensity of III-IV.

Authorities have not reported damages or personal injuries due to the incident thus far.
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Attention

4.8 magnitude earthquake recorded in Van province, Turkey


Daily Sabah
Thu, 29 Oct 2015 15:03 UTC
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A magnitude 4.8 earthquake was recorded in the Muradiye district of eastern Van province in Turkey.

The earthquake occurred on Thursday at 12:46 local time, according to the Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency of Turkey (AFAD).

The earthquake reportedly occurred at a depth of 5.17 km.

The quake was felt by the locals around the district. Some houses were damaged by the earthquake while one person was injured, according to initial reports.

The eastern Turkish city of Van has recuperated from the devastating earthquake that hit four years ago with massive rebuilding work
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Attention

4.4 earthquake recorded off Barbados


Nation News
Wed, 28 Oct 2015 14:57 UTC
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© UWI Seismic Research CentreThe quake was located 128 kilometres to the northeast of Bridgetown.
The University oF the West Indies Seismic Research Centre recorded a 4.4 magnitude earthquake off Barbados at 10:05 this morning.

The quake was located 128 kilometres to the northeast of Bridgetown at Lattitude 13.91N and Longitude 58.78W.

It occurred at a depth of 49 kilometres.
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Meteor

Gloversville, New York residents report loud boom followed by earthquakes

Rachel Yonkunas
News10
Wed, 28 Oct 2015 23:05 UTC
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© news10.com
Reports of houses shaking, explosions and earthquakes were the talk around Gloversville on Wednesday.

People in downtown Gloversville felt their buildings shaking because the U.S. Geological Survey said an earthquake struck about a mile west of the city. But many people felt and heard a loud boom, and they still don't know what caused it. "It, like, rattled the whole house," Raven Holmberg-Gonzalez said.

Holmberg-Gonzalez didn't know what happened when she felt her entire house move just before 5 p.m. "It felt like vibration but really, really heavy, and I couldn't believe it," she said. "I thought somebody fell in the house." But the vibration was a 2.5 magnitude earthquake, according to USGS. The USGS reported it hit a mile west of downtown Gloversville.

Steven Smith is a civil engineer. He used to work in Atlanta doing earthquake design for buildings in Indonesia. He wasn't surprised the shaking he felt at work was an earthquake. "It seemed like it was actually on the third floor of my office building," he said. "And I thought somebody dropped something very heavy." But many people, including Smith, said they heard a loud boom during the earthquake. They said it sounded like thunder.


Comment: Space rocks are a certainly a possibility. A loud boom, followed by ground shaking are one of the hallmarks of an overhead meteor explosion.

Forget About Global Warming: We're One Step From Extinction!

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Attention

Public official behind L'Aquila earthquake advice to stand trial in Italy

Edwin Cartlidge
Science Insider
Thu, 29 Oct 2015 18:15 UTC
L'Aquila earthquake
© AFPThe earthquake devastated the city of L'Aquila and many surrounding villages
A high-ranking public official who sent a group of scientists to L'Aquila to assess seismic risk ahead of the deadly earthquake that struck the city in 2009 is to stand trial on charges of manslaughter, a judge ruled today. His trial follows the October 2012 conviction and sentencing to 6 years in prison of the seven experts, and the acquittal of all bar one of them last November.

Guido Bertolaso, who at the time of the earthquake was head of Italy's civil protection department, set up a meeting of the experts as full or acting members of an official panel known as the National Commission for the Forecast and Prevention of Major Risks on 31 March 2009, ostensibly to analyze the risk posed by a series of small- and medium-sized earthquakes that had been shaking the region around L'Aquila for several months. But following the earthquake, which struck 6 days later leaving 309 dead, the scientists were accused of having provided the public with a false and fatal sense of security.

The experts—Bertolaso's deputy together with three seismologists, a volcanologist, and two seismic engineers—were put on trial in L'Aquila in September 2011 and charged with having carried out a superficial risk analysis during their 2009 meeting. The prosecution alleged that they made a series of unjustifiably reassuring statements that led some people to abandon traditional precaution and remain indoors during the quake.

Comment: For more information on this case, see:

Scientists Are the New Witches: Italy jails six seismologists for failing to predict earthquake

Italy: Seismologists Tried for Manslaughter Over Quake

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Attention

Earthquake swarm shakes central North Island, New Zealand


The New Zealand Herald
Thu, 29 Oct 2015 15:39 UTC
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A series of light earthquakes have shaken the central North Island this morning.

Eight quakes rocked the areas around Turangi and Tokoroa between 3.14am and 3.43am, while two other quakes shook near Te Anau and St Arnaud in the South Island.

The rattles kicked off at 3.14am when a 3.4 magnitude quake shook 10km west of Turangi. At a depth of 7km, GeoNet classified the quake as moderate. Around 10 people reported feeling the shake.

It was followed a minute later by a 3.3 magnitude quake 5km south-east of Tokoroa, at a depth of 28km.
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Attention

5.6-magnitude quake hits near Amchitka, Alaska


BNO News
Wed, 28 Oct 2015 15:33 UTC
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A moderate earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 5.6 has struck near the islands of Amchitka and Little Sitkin in southwest Alaska, seismologists say.

The earthquake, which struck at 6:49 p.m. AKDT, was centered about 25 miles (40 kilometers) west of Amchitka, or about 32 miles (51 kilometers) west of Little Sitkin Island. It struck about 68 miles (110 kilometers) deep, making it a relatively deep earthquake, according to the National Tsunami Warning Center.

The warning center said a tsunami is not expected, and no tsunami warnings or watches are in effect.

Amchitka Island is a volcanic and tectonically unstable island in the Rat Islands group of the Aleutian Islands. It has had no permanent population since 1832.
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Attention

Earthquake swarm recorded near Pahala, Hawaii


Big Island Video News
Tue, 27 Oct 2015 15:23 UTC
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Screen capture taken Monday showing the USGS interactive earthquake map. The swarm is makai of Highway 11, north of Pahala town.
A small increase in earthquake activity on the southwest rift of Kīlauea near Pahala has been observed over the past few days.

An interactive USGS map shows the location of the quakes, and the USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory had this to say in Tuesday's Kilauea status update:
"The increase in earthquake activity on the southwest rift of Kīlauea continues. Earthquake swarms in this area are not unusual, and have not correlated with any significant change in activity of the volcano. These deep earthquakes (20-40 km or 12-25 miles) are associated with the conduit supplying magma from the mantle hotspot to the volcano's summit. "

USGS Hawaiian Volcano Observatory on Oct. 27, 2015
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Bizarro Earth

Record-breaking swarm of earthquakes hit California city

Stephanie Pappas
Live science
Tue, 27 Oct 2015 17:07 UTC
California Earthquakes
© USGS/ComCat catalogA map of earthquake locations in the San Ramon swarm.
A whopping 408 earthquakes have hit San Ramon, California, in the past two weeks, including 11 in one 24-hour stretch.

This record-breaking earthquake swarm is nothing to fear, however, according to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). Periods of tectonic unrest are common in the area and probably don't presage a larger quake, the USGS said.

Most of the quakes affecting this Bay Area city are tiny. The one that kicked off the swarm at 8:50 a.m. Pacific Time on Oct. 13 was a mere magnitude 0.8. People don't usually feel earthquakes until they reach a magnitude of 2.5; quakes between magnitude 2.5 and 5.4 can be felt but rarely cause much damage. Most of the quakes occur at depths of 5 to 6 miles (8 to 9.7 kilometers).

A handful of the San Ramon quakes have rattled locals, including a magnitude-3.6 quake that hit on Oct. 19 and a magnitude-3.1 quake recorded on Oct. 27, both causing weak to light shaking in the East Bay (the eastern part of the San Francisco Bay area). Between 11:30 a.m. PT on Oct. 22 and 11:30 a.m. on Oct. 23, 11 quakes hit the area. Five were between magnitudes of 2.0 and 2.9, and one was a magnitude 3.2.
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