10-07-19, 09:27
|
#1
|
Join Date: Feb 2011
Posts: 47,639
Thanks: 27,645
Thanked 14,458 Times in 10,262 Posts
|
HUGE Crack in Earth Detected in Satellite Images After Earthquake
California: Satellite Images Show Giant Crack Caused by Earthquake
Before and after images show a large crack that was ripped open in the Mojave Desert by Friday's 7.1-magnitude earthquake.
Sky News UK 10 July 2019.
Before and after imagery of the epicentre of the recent Ridgecrest Earthquake. Pic: Planet Labs Inc
The impact of Southern California's strongest earthquake in 20 years has been revealed after satellite images showed how a huge crack emerged in the Earth's surface.
The US state was rocked by two powerful earthquakes of magnitudes 7.1 and 6.4 last week along with hundreds of aftershocks.
The stronger quake on Friday struck 11 miles from the city of Ridgecrest, with satellite images by Planet Labs Inc showing the large crack that was ripped open in the Mojave Desert.
The US Geological Survey has reportedly said the crack is not a new fault line and the recent quake activity is not related to the dangerous San Andreas fault.
Before last week, the last time an earthquake above a magnitude of 6 struck Southern California was in 1999 when a 7.1 magnitude event - dubbed the Hector Mine quake - was recorded.
Friday's quake ruptured gas lines and sparked numerous fires in Ridgecrest, about 125 miles from Los Angeles.
RIDGECREST, CALIFORNIA - JULY 04: A local resident inspects a fissure in the earth after a 6.4 magnitude earthquake struck the area on July 4, 2019 near Ridgecrest, California.
The earthquake was the largest to strike Southern California in 20 years with the epicenter located in a remote area of the Mojave Desert. The temblor was felt by residents across much of Southern California.
Offices in central LA were shaken for around 30 seconds by the tremors, and the quake was also felt in the Hollywood Hills, Las Vegas and parts of Mexico.
It came after Southern California was struck by a 6.4-magnitude quake on Thursday, which was followed by a strong 5.4-magnitude aftershock in the early hours of the next morning.
The force of the earthquake left a crack through this highway Pic: Karaleigh Roe
There were minor injuries but no reports of anyone seriously hurt or killed.
Fears of a large quake had grown recently after 1,000 small tremors were reportedly recorded in Southern California over three weeks.
The "swarmageddon" produced earthquakes with an average magnitude of 3 last month, the LA Times reported.
Fissures that opened up under a highway during a powerful earthquake that struck Southern California are seen near the city of Ridgecrest, California, U.S., July 4, 2019.
California officials are spending more than $40m (£32m) on an earthquake early warning system that - in addition to alerting the public - could also be used to automatically halt trains and open fire station doors moments before a major tremor actually strikes.
Emergency management officials have said they intend to have the statewide warning system in place by mid-2021 to serve California's roughly 40 million residents.
READ MORE:
More earthquakes 'approaching certainty' in Southern California following 7.1-magnitude tremor
|
|
|