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10 curiosities you should know about earthquakes

2023-09-13 20:02:34Lifestyle SHKRUAR NGA REDAKSIA VOX
10 curiosities you should know about earthquakes
10 curiosities you should know about earthquakes

At 23:11 on September 8, 2023, local time, an earthquake with a magnitude of 6.8 struck Morocco. The still provisional death toll is over 2,500 dead and thousands seriously injured. The epicenter of the tremor, which lasted 30 seconds, was southwest of Marrakech, at a depth of 18.5 kilometers. The last strong earthquake with a magnitude of 3.9 was recorded on the morning of September 10.

We still cannot predict earthquakes, but the Italian magazine Focus.it has published some curiosities about these destructive natural events, capable of generating in a few seconds more energy than that derived from thousands of atomic bombs.

1 - WHEN DO EARTHQUAKES HAPPEN ? An earthquake occurs when the rocks that make up the earth's crust crack, as they are subjected to stresses resulting from the movements of the tectonic plates on which they lie. When these forces exceed the limit of resistance of the rocks themselves, they crack, releasing energy in the form of seismic waves.

2 – WHAT ARE SEISMIC WAVES? They are powerful vibrations that propagate underground. There are two types: P waves (the first), which pass through rocks in the same direction as they travel, compressing and expanding them like an accordion, and S waves (the second), which act orthogonally to the ground, making it wavy.

3 – HOW ARE THEY MEASURED? The Richter scale measures the magnitude of an earthquake, i.e. the elastic energy released; the Mercalli scale that has been used in the past assesses its intensity by examining the effects on the environment, on objects and on people. Now only the first is used because it gives clear indications, while the second varies based on the location of the earthquake. Important: the Richter scale is exponential by a factor of 30. This means that compared to a magnitude 1.0 earthquake, a magnitude 2.0 earthquake is thirty times stronger, while a magnitude 3.0 is 30 x 30 = 900 times, a magnitude 4.0 earthquake will be 27,000 (30 x 30 x 30) times.

4 – WHAT WAS THE MOST POWERFUL EARTHQUAKE EVER RECORDED? The one that struck central Chile at 14:11 on May 22, 1960, reached a magnitude of 9.5 and the shock was also felt in Japan and Europe. In Italy, the sad record goes to the 7.2 earthquake that struck the Strait of Messina on December 28, 1908, causing over 100,000 casualties.

5 – WHAT ARE THE HYPOCENTRE AND EPICENTRE AND HOW ARE THEY CALCULATED? The breaking point is called the hypocenter, while its orthogonal correspondent on the surface is the epicenter. To obtain the depth data of the former it is necessary to study the propagation of P and S waves.

6 – HOW LONG DOES AN EARTHQUAKE LAST? The duration cannot be determined unilaterally. It depends on the size, the distance from the hypocenter and the geology of the earth. However, there are two ways to think about the duration of an earthquake. The time required for the crack, or the period of oscillation felt at a given point, can be considered.

7 – CAN WE PREDICT THEM? No. The existence of some "seismic precursors" has been discovered, but they are impossible to monitor. They deal with the emission of radioactive chemical elements from underground (such as radon), changes in the position and electromagnetism of rocks, the analysis of micro-earthquakes that may precede a larger event.

8 – A ËSHTË E VËRTETË QË KAFSHËT I DËGJOJNË FILLIMISHT? Ka studime që përshkruajnë sjellje të pazakontë të kafshëve kur afrohet një tërmet. Megjithatë, është e vështirë të konfirmohet se, ndërsa afrohet një tërmet, ka sjellje reale parashikuese nga vetë kafshët. Por nuk përjashtohet që ata të jenë në gjendje të perceptojnë valët që mund t’i paraprijnë një goditjeje të dhunshme dhe që nuk janë të dallueshme nga njeriu, ose ndryshimet në rrjedhat e ujit nëntokësor ose lëshimin e gazit nga toka.

9 – WHAT ARE THE MOST DANGEROUS AREAS? First those of the "ring of fire", the ring that follows the perimeter of the two most active plates, the Pacific and Nazca, and that goes from Chile to New Zealand passing through America, Japan and the Southeast Asian archipelago. Southern Europe (Italy, Greece and Turkey), the Middle East and the Himalayas are also important seismic zones.

10 – CAN THEY BE CAUSED BY PEOPLE? In some cases yes, but if we exclude those created by atomic explosions, they are almost invisible. Seismographs are able to detect them. Some are caused by oil extraction, others, even, by the exaltation of fans inside a stadium.


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