THE earthquake of 8.8 Richter that was marked off its Russia and caused warnings for tsunami across Pacific Oceannoted in a ‘rift», Where the denser tectonic plate of Pacific is pushed under lightest northern Americanaccording to seismologists.

The area of the peninsula Kamchatkato Russianis particularly vulnerable to such seismic vibrations, as the Pacific plate moves to the west at approximately speed 8cm per yearaccording to the Roger Masonhis researcher Geological institute.

The epicenter of the earthquake was found near the city Petrophallovsk-Kamsacsky and this is the strongest earthquake in the area from the devastating earthquake in Plug her Japan the 2011that had caused a tsunami and nuclear disaster in Fukushima.

Why was a tsunami caused

The earthquakes of this kind – so -called ‘mega-repressive» – They have a small focal depth and disturb the bottom of the sea, displacing huge amounts of water. This one had a focal depth just 20.7 kilometers And it was underwater, significantly increasing the risk of tsunami.

“Submarine earthquakes with a small depth are more likely to cause tsunami because they may break down the surface of the sea bottom“, Explained Adam Pascalhead of scientist Australian Seismology Center.

Ripples tall 1.7 meters reached up to the Hawaiismaller than initial estimates, however, experts point out that even small waves can cause serious damage to island states with low altitude.

In fact, in areas of French Polynesian Issued warnings for waves up to and 4 meters.

The tsunami intensity, according to Pascal, also depends on the morphology of the coastline. “If the coast has a mild slope, the energy of the wave diffuses. If it is sharp, the tension increases dramatically ».

Seismic activity and aftershocks

The earthquake was already followed by at least 10 aftershocks above 5 Richter And scientists warn that the post -seismic sequence can last for months.

According to Caroline Orciston, of his director Viability center of Otago University to New Zealand:

“Earthquakes of such power activate aftershocks that start immediately and some of them may be dangerous on their own.”

The 8.8 Richter earthquake came less than two weeks after a 7.4 earthquake in the same area, which is now considered a “care”.

“Earthquakes are by nature unpredictable“, Commented Pascal. “There are no fixed heralds or signs. By the morning we thought the previous one was the main earthquake“

Although an even greater aftershock cannot be ruled out, experts explain that as time goes on, the probability is reduced.

“Large aftershocks are frequent at first, but their frequency is gradually reduced. Usually if something bigger is going to follow, this will happen within a few days or weeks“, Adds Pascal.