8/17/2023 0 Comments Quake logo text![]() ![]() The first project is SALSA, or the 'Southern Alps Long Skinny Array'. "Will it start in the south and rupture to the north? Will it go very deep? Will it rupture very slowly or very quickly? These two experiments are really intended to address these questions." "We know the Alpine Fault produces big earthquakes, but we haven't seen one ourselves in recorded memory," he says. Townend is one of the academics leading two key research projects to work out what might happen when the earthquake hits. "This is the time, really, for communities, scientists and engineers to be thinking ahead – thinking about what it might mean if the earthquake were to unfold the way we think it might." SALSA and SISSLE "That is something that causes us legitimate concern but on the other hand, we can prepare for that. "It doesn't mean an earthquake is imminent tomorrow or next week, but it does mean that compared to the long-term behaviour of the fault we are in a fairly late stage. "We are quite late in the typical cycle of the Alpine Fault's big earthquakes," John Townend, a professor of geophysics at Victoria University, tells The Detail. The last one was in 1717 – and the next could happen at any time. The geological record dates back 8000 years and from that we know there's been an earthquake on the fault about every 300 years. Running 600km along the Southern Alps, it marks the boundary of the Pacific and Australian plates. With new research revealing where might be hit hardest, work has begun on preparing West Coast communities for the inevitable shake.Ī big earthquake on the Alpine Fault is overdue and one expert says it's New Zealand's "big elephant in the room". When it comes to an earthquake along the Alpine Fault, it's a question of not 'if', but 'when'. Podcast: The Detail Preparing for the big quake on the Alpine Fault ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |