So far 822 people have died due to earthquake in African country Morocco. 672 people have been injured. The Moroccan Geological Center reported that the earthquake’s magnitude was 7.2. It came late Friday night. However, the US Geological Survey has reported its intensity as 6.8. Also said that this is the most powerful earthquake to hit this area in 120 years.
Moroccan state television reported that several buildings had collapsed due to the quake. Many videos related to the earthquake are becoming increasingly viral on social media, in which people are seen running. The epicenter of the earthquake is said to be a village named Ighil near the Atlas Mountains, which is 70 kilometers from the city of Marrakesh. The depth of the earthquake was 18.5 kilometers below the ground. Earthquake tremors were felt as far as Portugal and Algeria.
The buildings were reduced to debris due to the earthquake. Parts of the red walls that attract tourists’ attention in historic Marrakesh, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, have also been damaged. According to the US Geological Survey, earthquakes are quite rare in North Africa. Earlier in 1960, an earthquake of 5.8 magnitude had occurred near Agadir. Thousands of people had died then.
Understand the impact of earthquake from the map…
Know how earthquake occurs?
Our earth’s surface is mainly made up of 7 big and many small tectonic plates. These plates keep floating continuously and sometimes collide with each other. Many times, due to collision, the corners of the plates bend and when there is too much pressure, these plates start breaking. In such a situation, the energy released from below finds a way out and after this disturbance an earthquake occurs. Due to this, fault lines are formed in the ground.
Now know about three types of fault lines…
Reverse Fault- During an earthquake, a part of the ground rises upwards.
Normal Fault- In this fault a part of the ground moves downwards.
Strike Slip Fault- Due to friction in tectonic plates, a part of the land slides forward or backward.
In 2011, the earth had shifted due to the earthquake in Japan.
On March 11, 2011, Japan was hit by the most powerful earthquake ever, a magnitude 9.1 earthquake. This earthquake not only took the lives of people, but also shifted the earth’s axis by 4 to 10 inches. Besides, the daily rotation speed of the Earth also increased.
At that time, USGS seismologist Paul Earle had said that this earthquake had shifted Japan’s largest island Honshu about 8 feet east from its place. During this, there were more than 160 earthquakes in the first 24 hours. Of these, 141 had a magnitude of 5 or more. This earthquake and tsunami in Japan had killed more than 15 thousand people.
Japan is in the most earthquake sensitive area. It falls in the Pacific Ring of Fire region. The Ring of Fire is an area where there are several continental as well as oceanic tectonic plates. When these plates collide with each other, earthquakes occur, tsunamis arise and volcanoes erupt.
The effect of this Ring of Fire can be seen from New Zealand to Japan, Alaska and North and South America. 90% of the world’s earthquakes occur in this Ring of Fire region. This area is spread over 40 thousand kilometers. Of all the active volcanoes in the world, 75% are in this region. 15 countries are under this Ring of Fire.
India is also moving towards Europe
In the year 2022, geologists of Australia had prepared a new map of all the tectonic plates present on Earth. It was told that the microplate between the Indian Plate and the Australian Plate has been included in the map. It was also said that India is moving towards Europe.
Due to this, it is feared that in the coming days, the collision of these two plates may cause a severe earthquake in the northern parts including the Himalayas. Dr. Derrick Hastrock, lecturer in the Department of Earth Sciences at the University of Adelaide, Australia, and his colleagues have prepared this map together.
Dr. Derrick has said that our map tells the complete story of 90 percent of the earthquakes and 80% of the volcanic eruptions that have occurred on Earth in the last 2 million years. Whereas the current model gives information about only 65% of earthquakes. With the help of this map people can calculate natural disasters.
Andaman’s Indira Point was submerged due to the 2004 earthquake and tsunami.
On 26 December 2004, Indira Point of Andaman and Nicobar Islands was submerged due to the earthquake and subsequent tsunami in Indonesia. This island is located at a distance of 138 km from Sumatra.
There is only one light house here, which was inaugurated on 30 April 1972. It is located in the extreme south of India and is also called the last point of India. It is named after former Prime Minister of India Indira Gandhi. The lighthouse at Indira Point serves to provide light to ships traveling through India to Malaysia and Malacca.
An island was formed in Bhuj due to an earthquake 204 years ago.
In India, 204 years ago i.e. in the year 1819, an island was formed due to an earthquake in Bhuj, Gujarat. It is known as Allah Bandh. According to scientists, this is possible if there is an earthquake of more than 7.8 intensity on the Richter scale.
The reason for this can be attributed to the rift between the plates inside the ground. Experts say that these plates move continuously. Sometimes there is a rift between them. In such a situation, if an earthquake of greater than 7.5 intensity and greater depth occurs under the sea, then these plates slide over each other several times. If the plates reach a height of even 6-7 meters then it becomes an island-like situation.
Due to the 2015 Nepal earthquake, Kathmandu also shifted by 10 feet.
Nepal’s devastating earthquake in April 2015 not only claimed hundreds of lives, but also disrupted the geography of the Himalayan country. Tectonic expert James Jackson of the University of Cambridge said that after the earthquake, the land beneath Kathmandu shifted three meters i.e. about 10 feet towards the south.
However, there are no signs of any change in the geography of Everest, the world’s largest mountain peak. This earthquake in Nepal was as powerful as 20 big nuclear bombs.
A part of India slipped up to 10 feet in Nepal
Adelaide University scientist Sandy Stacey had claimed that Indian tectonic plates were moving north due to pressure caused by the Himalayas; Which is called the Eurasian Plate, has moved 10 degrees towards the northeast. Due to this, a part of India has slipped below Nepal by about one to ten feet in a short time during the earthquake. In this entire geographical process, about one to two thousand square miles area of the Himalayas has shifted.
According to Colin Stark, Associate Research Professor at Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, Columbia University, America, the upper rocks of the earth’s surface (which are limestone rocks) in Bihar, bordering Nepal, will move towards the north in a few seconds and reach Nepal. Got down
This friction in the Indian plate has affected the Janakpur zone of Nepal from Bharatpur to Hitauda. The Indian land adjacent to this area (East-West Champaran) has gone under the surface of Nepal.
It has become clear that the entire Indian subcontinent is slowly sinking beneath the fault of Nepal and Tibet. The rate of subsidence of the surface of Nepal and Tibet of the Indian subcontinent is 1.8 inches every year.
In 2013, a 300 feet long island was formed in the sea of Gwadar due to earthquake.
On September 25, 2013, an earthquake of magnitude 7.8 struck Balochistan, Pakistan, creating an island in the sea in the coastal city of Gwadar. This egg-shaped island was 250 to 300 feet long and about 60-70 feet above the surface of the water. Its surface is rough and most of the area was covered with mud. There was also sand in some areas. There was also solid rock in one area.
