Wednesday, November 14, 2012

NZ seismic research reveals 200 extra faultlines

     
English: The Pyne Gould Building following the...
English: The Pyne Gould Building following the , , New Zealand. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
New Zealand
New Zealand (Photo credit: erjkprunczýk)

Seismic research off the coast of New Zealand has identified another 200 fault lines that could cause catastrophic tsunamis if a significant earthquake struck.
GNS Science, along with the National Institute for Water and Atmospheric Research (Niwa), have just wrapped up a major project to revise the New Zealand National Seismic Hazard Model (NSHM).
A number of newly identified faults have now been added to the model, raising the total number of known fault lines by about 200 - to nearly 530.
Niwa said a particularly large fault found offshore near Canterbury had the potential to cause a significant tsunami.
The large fault was found in the bedrock under Pegasus Bay shortly after the February Christchurch quake when GNS Science and Niwa conducted a survey of 800 square kilometres.
Scientist Philip Barnes said New Zealand had to prepare for marine quakes in many locations.
"There are many earthquake faults on the sea-floor around our coasts, and the next major earthquake could be centred offshore. So it highlights the need for coastal marine investigations of active earthquake faulting, for both ground-shaking hazards and tsunamis," he said.


http://tvnz.co.nz/national-news/seismic-research-reveals-200-extra-fault-lines-5216682
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