7.7 Magnitude Quake Hits British Columbia 65
schwit1 writes "A magnitude 7.7 earthquake hit Canada's Pacific coast province of British Columbia on Saturday night, the U.S. Geological Survey reported. The quake was centered 123 miles south-southwest of Prince Rupert at a depth of 6.2 miles. 'Earthquakes Canada said the quake in the Haida Gwaii region has been followed by numerous aftershocks as large as 4.6 and said a small tsunami has been recorded by a deep ocean pressure sensor.
'It was felt across much of north-central B.C., including Haida Gwaii, Prince Rupert, Quesnel, and Houston. There have been no reports of damage at this time,' the agency said in a statement on its website.'"
About 1% of the energy of the Japanese earthquake (Score:1, Insightful)
Of course, that didn't stop anyone from fearmongering and once more tens of thousands were evacuated needlessly - ensuring that hundreds or thousands won't follow evacuation orders when a real tsunami is coming. It is about time to stop using logarithmic scales for earthquakes. A 7.7 isn't anywhere near as bad as a 9.0 or a 9.2 that created the tsunamis of Japan iand Indonesia respectively.
0.2 more on the scale is a doubling of the energy released by the earthquake and a doubling of the energy potentially creating a tsunami. A difference of 1.3 is a factor 90-100.Yes, a 7.7 earthquake can create locally devastating tsunamis - but in this case your only warning will be the earthquake itself, as the wave will arrive within minutes and any official warning will be too late.
We're doing a disservice to people who may one day be affected by a real tsunami, if tell them to evacuate hundreds of times because of waves barely reaching the height of an average humans knee. (The 1m height reported is from peak to the lowest point - and the lowest point was 2 feet below normal sealevel.)
The only sane course of action if you're somewhere in the pacific or indian ocean and hear a tsunami warning, is to tell people to go and fuck off. Stop crying wolf!
Re:About 1% of the energy of the Japanese earthqua (Score:5, Insightful)
Of course, that didn't stop anyone from fearmongering and once more tens of thousands were evacuated needlessly - ensuring that hundreds or thousands won't follow evacuation orders when a real tsunami is coming.
And they'd be idiots for ignoring a tsunami warning.
It is about time to stop using logarithmic scales for earthquakes. A 7.7 isn't anywhere near as bad as a 9.0 or a 9.2 that created the tsunamis of Japan iand Indonesia respectively.
It's not the logarithmic nature of the scale that's an issue, but the type of earthquake. A subduction quake causes more water displacement, hence greater tsunami, for a given magnitude. This was not a subduction quake, but a parallel slipping.
if tell them to evacuate hundreds of times because of waves barely reaching the height of an average humans knee. (The 1m height reported is from peak to the lowest point - and the lowest point was 2 feet below normal sealevel.)
I've told you eleventeen trillion times not to exaggerate. I don't believe there's been a tsunami warning since the Japan quake.
The only sane course of action if you're somewhere in the pacific or indian ocean and hear a tsunami warning, is to tell people to go and fuck off. Stop crying wolf!
That's an insanely stupid course of action. You're quite welcome to follow it however.
Re:Slashdot-worthy? (Score:4, Insightful)
This earthquake was the largest ever recorded in the region, so yes, it is.