New Round of Geo-Assualt at Kermadec Trench

Magnitude 6.3 Quake South of Fiji Isles May Herald New Round of ‘Geo-Assault’ at Kermadec Trench

Following the powerful 7.8 magnitude earthquake that struck the tip of the Fiordland, South island, New Zealand, followed by a large cluster of aftershocks (still ongoing), another round of geo-assault appear to be gearing up at the southern end of the Kermadec trench.

The Fiordland quakes occurred as a result of a large reverse faulting motion caused by the subduction of the Australian subplate under the Pacific plate, on which Fiordland rests,  in Puysegur Trench, at the Alpine Fault.

The new wave of earthquakes would instead be caused by the ‘mirror image’ action, with Pacific plate subducting beneath the Australian protoplate.

A magnitude 6.3 earthquake that struck south of the Fiji Islands on August 18, 2009 at 21:21 UTC may herald a new round of intense [and unprecedented] seismic activity at Kermadec Trench to the north, NE, and East of the North Island, as well as the north, NE, and east of the South Island, New Zealand.

Details of the latest quake in the region:

Earthquake Location Map. Source of original map: USGS

• Magnitude: 6.3
• Date-Time:  Tuesday, August 18, 2009 at 21:20:47 UTC

• Location: 26.014°S, 178.390°W
• Depth:  269 km (167.2 miles)
• Region: SOUTH OF THE FIJI ISLANDS
• Distances:
  • 360 km (225 miles) N of Raoul Island, Kermadec Islands
  • 595 km (370 miles) S of Ndoi Island, Fiji
  • 1365 km (850 miles) NNE of Auckland, New Zealand
  • 1800 km (1120 miles) NNE of WELLINGTON, New Zealand

• Location Uncertainty:  horizontal +/- 6 km (3.7 miles)
• Parameters:  NST=236, Nph=236, Dmin=362.1 km, Rmss=0.95 sec, Gp= 29°,  M-type=centroid moment magnitude (Mw), Version=8
• Source:  USGS NEIC (WDCS-D)
• Event ID: us2009klcj

[Caution: Data provided by the USGS  Earthquake Hazard Program may be subject to large margins of error as well as ‘ghost reporting,’ and therefore may be unreliable. ]

Related Links:

• Mt Ruapehu Eruption Alert
• Mag 5.3 Earthquake Rattles North Island, NZ
• Magnitude 7 Earthquake Hits Kermadec Islands
• Magnitude 6.8 Quake strikes Kermadec Isls Region
• Powerful 7.8 M Quake Strikes New Zealand Region
• http://newzeelend.wordpress.com/2009/05/09/a-warning-to-new-zealand-visitors/

• FEWW Earthquake Links

More Aftershocks Strike Gulf of Calif, NZ

Another strong aftershock Strikes Gulf of California

A strong aftershock measuring 5.5Mw struck the Gulf of California on Wednesday, August 5, at 09:13:13 UTC, USGS reported.

The latest aftershock was the third one reported by USGS, which had earlier upgraded a previous aftershock, the largest to date, to a magnitude 6.2 [from 5.9 Mw.]

A powerful mainshock measuring 6.9 shook the Gulf of California on Monday.

10-degree Map Centered at 30°N,115°W

Earthquake Location Map. USGS

Location: 29.615°N, 113.850°W
Depth: 10km
Event ID: us2009jwbr

A powerful aftershock strikes off west coast of the South Island, NZ

Meanwhile, a much stronger aftershock measuring 6.1Mw struck off west coast of the South Island, New Zealand.

Location: 45.472°S, 166.336°E
Depth: 10km
Event ID: us2009jyaw

Click on the link for details of the mainshock:
Powerful 7.8 M Quake Strikes New Zealand Region

Related Links

• California Earthquake Forecast 2009 – UPDATE
• Magnitude 6.9 Quake Strikes Gulf of California
• Powerful 7.8 M Quake Strikes New Zealand Region
• California Earthquake Forecast 2009 [See also the comments section]
• FEWW Earthquake Links

• Magnitude 7 Earthquake Hits Kermadec Islands
• Magnitude 6.8 Quake strikes Kermadec Isls Region

• New Zealand Hit by another Quake
• Mag 5.3 Earthquake Rattles North Island, NZ
• Earthquake Cluster Zone Closing in on New Zealand
• Magnitude 7 Earthquake Hits Kermadec Islands
• Mt Ruapehu Eruption Alert [See also the comments section]