. Earth Science News .
SHAKE AND BLOW
Major 7.0-magnitude earthquake hits Papua New Guinea

The epicenter of the earthquake in Papua New Guinea. The various dots represent the depth of the eartquake. Dark blue is the deepest (400 km on average), green is mid-range (100 km on average), and red and yellow are most shallow (0-50 km). (NOAA).
by Staff Writers
Port Moresby (AFP) Aug 5, 2010
A major 7.0-magnitude earthquake struck a remote mountainous region of the Pacific nation of Papua New Guinea on Thursday, seismologists said, causing panic but no initial damage or injuries.

The quake hit a sparsely populated area of the island of New Britain at 8:01 am (2201 GMT Wednesday) at a depth of 54 kilometres, the US Geological Survey (USGS) and the Papua New Guinea Earthquake Office said.

"We are not aware of any damage at this point, but it was pretty strongly felt in the town of Kimbe and on other parts of the island, people are really shaken up," seismologist Lawrence Anton of the PNG Earthquake Office told AFP.

The quake hit about 20 kilometres (12 miles) from the centre of a 7.3-magnitude earthquake that hit the region in July.

The epicentre of the latest quake was 145 kilometres east of Kandrian, on New Britain, and 570 kilometres east of Port Moresby, the capital of Papua New Guinea.

But while the quake rattled the 20,000-strong town of Kimbe, which lies about 80 kilometres from the epicentre, as well as villages in the region, few people live in the area around the epicentre, Anton said.

"A quake of this magnitude could cause quite sizeable damage, but only in populated areas immediately around it, so we do not expect major damage or injuries," Geoscience Australia duty seismologist Robbie Morris told AFP.

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center, based in Hawaii, said there was no threat of a widespread destructive tsunami as a result of the quake, which was not on the seabed.

Papua New Guinea, which is mired in poverty despite rich mineral deposits, sits on the so-called "Pacific Ring of Fire", a hotspot for seismic activity due to friction between tectonic plates.



Share This Article With Planet Earth
del.icio.usdel.icio.us DiggDigg RedditReddit
YahooMyWebYahooMyWeb GoogleGoogle FacebookFacebook



Related Links
Bringing Order To A World Of Disasters
When the Earth Quakes
A world of storm and tempest



Memory Foam Mattress Review
Newsletters :: SpaceDaily :: SpaceWar :: TerraDaily :: Energy Daily
XML Feeds :: Space News :: Earth News :: War News :: Solar Energy News


SHAKE AND BLOW
New Theory Of Why Midcontinent Faults Produce Earthquakes
West Lafayette IN (SPX) Aug 03, 2010
A new theory developed at Purdue University may solve the mystery of why the New Madrid fault, which lies in the middle of the continent and not along a tectonic plate boundary, produces large earthquakes such as the ones that shook the eastern United States in 1811 and 1812. The theory suggests that the energy necessary to produce the magnitude 7-7.5 earthquakes came from stored stress bu ... read more







SHAKE AND BLOW
Japanese rescue-bot can sniff out disaster survivors

Flood-triggered landslide in China leaves 21 missing

Haiti's homeless on the move again as hurricanes loom

Wildfire Prevention Pays Big Dividends In Florida

SHAKE AND BLOW
Google phones unseat BlackBerry as top sellers in US

China Leads In Outer Space Pollution

MetOp-B Module Passes Crucial Vacuum Test

Safe And Efficient De-Orbit Of Space Junk Without Making The Problem Worse

SHAKE AND BLOW
Well kill doesn't mask grim reality for Gulf fishermen

Workers in China rush to restore water to 330,000 people

Pacific islands want louder voice on climate

Biodiversity: Mediterranean most threatened sea on Earth

SHAKE AND BLOW
Ice drilling could foretell climate

Ice-Free Arctic Ocean May Not Be Of Much Use In Soaking Up Carbon Dioxide

Best Hope For Saving Arctic Sea Ice Is Cutting Soot Emissions

Cutting Into Arctic Sea Ice

SHAKE AND BLOW
Russia bans grain exports due to drought

Rebuilding Flood Plains, Agriculture, Economy

Pakistan farmers see livelihoods wiped out by floods

Bee 'pastures' could help agriculture

SHAKE AND BLOW
Major 7.0-magnitude earthquake hits Papua New Guinea

Thousands flee as Pakistan floods spread

UN rushes envoy to mounting Pakistan flood crisis

Huge evacuation underway as Pakistan floods hit four million

SHAKE AND BLOW
Mozambican-U.S. joint military exercise

More Somalis arrive from Saudi Arabia

GBissau records veterans in demobilisation drive

Uganda's rebels seen behind border killing

SHAKE AND BLOW
Scientists Unravel Human-Ecosystem Interactions

Walker's World: Sarkozy gets tough

Massive Gains For Women's Employment In India

Divers Plumb The Mysteries Of Sacred Maya Pools


The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2010 - SpaceDaily. AFP and UPI Wire Stories are copyright Agence France-Presse and United Press International. ESA Portal Reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. Advertising does not imply endorsement,agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by SpaceDaily on any Web page published or hosted by SpaceDaily. Privacy Statement