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https://theconversation.com/the-first-video-of-earths-surface-lurching-sideways-in-an-earthquake-offers-new-insights-into-this-force-of-nature-261004>
"During the devastating magnitude 7.7 Myanmar earthquake on March 28 this year,
a CCTV camera captured the moment the plate boundary moved, providing the first
direct visual evidence of plate tectonics in action.
Tectonic plate boundaries are where chunks of Earth’s crust slide past each
other – not smoothly, but in sudden, violent ruptures.
The footage shows Earth’s surface lurching sideways, like a gigantic conveyor
belt switched on for just a second, as the fault slips.
What we’re seeing is the propagation of a large earthquake rupture – the
primary mechanism that accommodates plate boundary motion at Earth’s surface.
These shear fractures travel at several kilometres per second, making them
notoriously difficult to observe.
These rare events, separated by centuries, have shaped our planet’s surface
over millions of years, creating features such as Aotearoa New Zealand’s Alpine
Fault and the Southern Alps.
Until now, seismologists have relied on distant seismic instruments to infer
how faults rupture during large earthquakes. This video sheds new light on the
process that radiates seismic energy and causes the ground to shake."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
