Magnitude 4.5 Quake Hits France-Germany Border

A moderate earthquake measuring 4.5 Mw strike France-Germany border region north of Switzerland.

The quake is uncomfortably close to an area considered to be the “world’s safest site” for burying large quantities of nuclear waste.

This Earthquake

Gold star NNE of Basel, Switzerland, marks the quake epicenter. Original Map: USGS

Magnitude: 4.5
Date-Time:

• Tuesday, May 05, 2009 at 01:39:24 UTC
• Tuesday, May 05, 2009 at 03:39:24 AM at epicenter

Location: 47.693°N, 7.819°E
Depth: 12 km (7.5 miles) set by location program
Region FRANCE-GERMANY BORDER REGION
Distances:

• 25 km (15 miles) NE of Basel, Switzerland
• 35 km (20 miles) S of Freiburg im Breisgau, Germany
• 65 km (40 miles) WNW of Zurich, Switzerland
• 90 km (55 miles) NNE of BERN, Switzerland

Location Uncertainty Error: estimate not available
Source: Centre Sismologique Euro-Mediterranéen, Bruyères-le-Châtel, France
Event ID: us2009ggaf

Saarwellingen, Germany

The epicenter of this quake was about 180km south of the town of Saarwellingen, in Germany’s historic mining region of Saarland, where coal mining set off a magnitude 4 earthquake on February 24, 2008 causing structural damage to buildings.

Clervaux

The epicenter of this shock was less than 250km SSE of Clervaux, an area SSE of Belgium believed to be the most “geologically stable” region in central Europe, and rumored to be under consideration for use as a nuclear waste dump.

Clervaux Triangle: Is this Europe’s safest site for a nuclear waste graveyard?

Seismic monitor of Europe © ORFEUS, 2009

Red = Today
Orange = Yesterday
Yellow = Past two weeks
Blue = All events in 2004 and 2005

Related Links:

• Mining Sets Off Earthquake in Germany