6.6-Magnitude and 6.2-Magnitude Earthquakes Struck Off the Coast of Antarctica
source: http://www.cnn.com/2012/01/15/world/americas/antarctica-earthquake/index.html?hpt=hp_t3
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Strong earthquake hits off Antarctica's coast
By the CNN Wire Staff
updated 6:58 PM EST, Sun January 15, 2012
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
The quake struck Sunday morning near Antarctica's Shetland Islands
The USGS reports it struck at a depth of 6.2 miles
A U.S. agency warns there's a "small possibility of a ... regional tsunami"
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(CNN) -- A strong 6.6-magnitude earthquake struck Sunday off the coast of Antarctica, prompting a warning that there was a "small possibility" it could trigger a tsunami.
The tremor was centered in waters south of South America's southern tip, about 334 miles (539 kilometers) west of Coronation Island and 388 miles northeast of Palmer Station in Antarctica, the U.S. Geological Survey reported.
It hit at 9:40 a.m. local time (8:40 a.m. ET) on Sunday, according to the federal agency, and had an estimated depth of 6.2 miles.
Afterward, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center released a statement saying that there appears to be no threat of "destructive widespread tsunami" because of the quake.
But the agency did state "there is a small possibility of a local or regional tsunami that could affect coasts located usually no more than a few hundred kilometers from the earthquake epicenter.
"Authorities in the region near the epicenter should be made aware of this possibility," the warning center added.
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lhCuo2YcNao
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YouTube video of news report
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http://channel6newsonline.com/2012/01/strong-earthquakes-strike-off-antarctica-n...
Channel 6 News...
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Strong earthquakes strike off Antarctica, no tsunami threat
15 January 2012 1,203 views BY: BNO News.
ELEPHANT, SOUTH SHETLAND ISLANDS (BNO NEWS) -- Two strong earthquakes struck near an uninhabited island off Antarctica on late Sunday morning, seismologists said, but there were no reports of damage or casualties.
The first earthquake at 9.40 a.m. local time (1340 GMT), which had a moment magnitude of 6.6, struck about 37 kilometers (23 miles) northwest of Elephant, a mountainous island in the outer reaches of the South Shetland Islands in the Southern Ocean. It struck about 10 kilometers (6.2 miles) deep, making it a shallow earthquake, according to the United States Geological Survey (USGS).
About 40 minutes later, a 6.2-magnitude aftershock struck the same area at a depth of about 14.2 kilometers (8.8 miles), the USGS reported. Seismologists said a 5.1-magnitude aftershock followed several hours later.
With the exception of more than a dozen research stations, there are no permanent residents on the South Shetland Islands, which is administered under the Antarctic Treaty System. "There are likely to be no affected structures in this region," the USGS said.
Because earthquakes with a magnitude below 7 do normally not generate tsunamis, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center did not issue a tsunami watch or warning. "A destructive widespread tsunami threat does not exist based on historical earthquake and tsunami data," the center said in a bulletin.
Although the earthquakes on Sunday struck along a transform fault near Elephant Island, the region does usually not experience earthquakes. The last notable earthquake in the area happened in June 2011 when a 4.9-magnitude earthquake struck northwest of Sunday's epicenter.
In September 2003, a powerful 7.6-magnitude earthquake struck the Scotia Sea, about 614 kilometers (381 miles) east of Sunday's epicenter. The earthquake in 2003 caused minor damage at Orcadas Base on Laurie Island.
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