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| -Signs, Portents, and the Weather- |
| Strong quake near Tonga prompts tsunami warning |
| 2009-03-19 |
| ...and a damn impressive undersea volcanic eruption. NUKU'ALOFA, Tonga – A strong 7.9-magnitude earthquake struck Friday near Tonga, generating a tsunami with the potential of striking coastlines in the South Pacific, officials said. There were no immediate reports of damage. The quake struck about 130 miles (200 kilometers) south-southeast of the Tongan capital of Nuku'Alofa at a depth of 6.2 miles (10 kilometers), the U.S. Geological Survey said. Police in the Tongan capital, Nuku'alofa, said there were no immediate reports of injury or damage. Local resident Pesi Fonua said the quake "lasted for something like 20 seconds," but "I haven't seen any damage from it." The Hawaii-based Pacific Tsunami Warning Center issued a tsunami warning for Tonga and neighboring islands, and reported that sea level readings have confirmed that a potentially destructive tsunami wave was generated by the quake. Local radio stations in Tonga broadcast warnings that a tsunami was possible and that people should move away from coastal villages, but police and locals said no big wave had been reported. Police spokesman Niua Kama said residents did not appear to take the warning seriously. "People are out on the roads, laughing at the warning," he told The Associated Press. "They are not moving from the coast" even though there had been "a strong warning of a tsunami. Police have not taken any action at this stage." The tsunami center also advised that some coastal areas of Hawaii could see a rise in sea level and strong currents lasting up to several hours. |
| Posted by:tu3031 |
| #2 It's long been speculated that there is a "reflective" earthquake pattern around the ring of fire. That is, when a major earthquake happens on one side of the ring, after a several days delay, another earthquake is triggered on the other side of the ring. Importantly, it doesn't seem to be a "fair", or "opposite" reflection, but this is created by the illusion of the curvature of the Earth. This makes more sense if you see the "Africa in Perspective" map, showing other major land bodies overlaying it: http://strangemaps.files.wordpress.com/2006/11/africa_in_perspective_map.jpg Looked at that way, the ring of fire looks much less like a ring, and the reflection of earthquakes seems to be much more "opposite" from the original earthquake. Another factor is that the ring of fire isn't a boundary to the earthquake wave front, so by adding extra time, there is an increased risk of earthquakes in zones outside of the ring. |
| Posted by: Anonymoose 2009-03-19 17:50 |
| #1 March 12: Tonga, Cuba to strengthen closer cooperation March 19: Halliburton Earthquake & Volcano Division is ON THE JOB! |
| Posted by: mojo 2009-03-19 17:46 |