Tectonics Case Studies Flashcards
Christchurch earthquake location
- Canterbury region
- South Island
- epicentre 6 miles south east of Christchurch
- shallow focus 5.95km
Christchurch earthquake key facts
- liquefaction around eastern suburbs 400,000 tonnes of silt.
- conservative plate margin, pacific and Australian plate caused locked fault.
- when released caused 6.3 mag earthquake
- shockwaves amplified by nearby solid rock
- soft upper layer 30m thick slapped back down on lower layer.
Christchurch earthquake impacts
- 185 deaths
- $40bn in damage
- 50% cbd buildings destroyed
Christchurch earthquake responses
- CPT (cone penetrometer testing) susceptibility to liquefaction.
- new buildings stone grid columns to stabilise and redistribute weight.
- GeoNet setup by government to quake proof homes
- recovery assistance centre
Haiti earthquake location
- occurred on West Indian island of Hispaniola
- Caribbean
- south of USA
- west of Mexico
- epicentre 25km west of capital
Haiti earthquake key facts
- Haiti lies on boundary of Caribbean and North American plates, slippage along conservative boundary caused magnitude 7 earthquake.
- aftershocks reaching magnitude 5.9
- unconsolidated rock under Port au Prince caused amplified shaking
- 13km focus
Haiti earthquake key impacts
- $8bn in damage
- 3.5 mil affected
- 220,000 dead
Haiti earthquake responses
- 989 business grants given out
- international aid from:
UNICEF $575 mil
Netherlands, Spain, china.
Nepal earthquake location
- Southern Asia
- north west of Thailand
- epicentre 50 miles north west of Kathmandu
Nepal earthquake key facts
- max intensity XI on mercalli scale
- Australian and Asian convergent plate boundary
- triggered avalanche on Mount Everest
Nepal earthquake key impacts
- halted development only 5% of houses have been rebuilt
- $6bn in damage
Nepal earthquake responses
- Bangladesh dispatched relief materials
- UNICEF fundraising
- cash-for-work project aimed to provide jobs by doing community work such as clearing debris
Indian Ocean tsunami location
- tsunami in the Indian Ocean
- hit coast of sumatra in Indonesia
- south east Asia
Indian Ocean tsunami key facts
- India and Burma plates convergent (oceanic-continental)
- earthquake mag 9 heaved ocean floor by 15m
- greatest fault ever 1500km
- several hours between earthquake and tsunami however no warning s in place
Indian Ocean tsunami key impacts
- 300,000 dead
- thailand lost $25mil per month in tourism
- freshwater supplies contaminated by salt water
Indian Ocean tsunami responses
- Indian Ocean tsunami warning and mitigation system set up to detect seismological changes
Tohoku tsunami 2011 location
- region on the island of Honsh
- northern Japan
Tohoku tsunami 2011 key facts
- mag 9 earthquake caused tsunami which struck offshore Japan
- convergent plate margin (Pacific-Eurasian)
- tsunami caused cooling failure and nuclear meltdown where radioactive water leaks into the ocean
Tohoku tsunami 2011 key impacts
- $300bn in damage
- radiation from nuclear power plant contaminated oceans
Tohoku tsunami 2011 responses
- residents received on eminute warning, trains were stopped and people were sent text messages
- early warning system prevented deaths
Eyjafjallajokul volcanic eruption 2010 location
- north west UK
- south Iceland
- under eyjafjallajokull ice caps
Eyjafjallajokull volcanic eruption 2010 key facts
- Eurasia and North American plate
- divergent plate margin
- formed disruptive plume of volcanic ash and gas
Eyjafjallajokull volcanic eruption 2010 impacts
- airline industry lost £1bn due to ash cloud
- large amount of co2 released
- residents in southern Iceland were evacuated from homes as flooding due to eruptions melting ice
Eyjafjallajokull volcanic eruption 2010 response
- closure of local airport
- evacuation of residents
- aid to those impacted
