Open AccessOld fractures caused rare 8.6 magnitude earthquake
Author(s) -
Bhattacharya Atreyee
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
eos, transactions american geophysical union
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.316
H-Index - 86
eISSN - 2324-9250
pISSN - 0096-3941
DOI - 10.1029/2012eo410021
Subject(s) - geology , seismology , quake (natural phenomenon) , intraplate earthquake , magnitude (astronomy) , plate tectonics , interplate earthquake , tension (geology) , earthquake magnitude , tsunami earthquake , moment magnitude scale , tectonics , compression (physics) , geometry , physics , materials science , mathematics , composite material , astronomy , scaling
The 8.6 magnitude earthquake that occurred on 11 April 2012 100 kilometers off the coast of Sumatra was unusual in that it originated within the plate rather than at a plate boundary. In fact, it is the largest such earthquake in observed human history. The quake originated under the Wharton Basin in the Indian Ocean, where hundreds of kilometers of rock were under crushing tension, causing the plate to deform at its base. However, this deforming zone also absorbed tension as two plates, the Indian and Australian plates, rotated toward each other.