Earthquake hits deep under South Pacific

[Algorem]

http://www.cleveland.com/newsflash/topstories/index.ssf?/base/international-0/1136245446206960.xml&storylist=

1/2/2006, 6:37 p.m. ET
The Associated Press

SUVA, Fiji (AP) — A powerful 7.1 magnitude earthquake hit deep under the South Pacific near Fiji Tuesday, the U.S. Geological Survey reported.

There were no immediate reports of injuries or damage, and the Hawaii-based Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said it did not expect the quake, which happened 579 kilometers (360 miles) below the earth's surface, to trigger a damaging Pacific-wide tsunami.

The temblor hit at 2213 GMT about 100 kilometers north-northeast of the remote Fijian island of Ndoi, the USGS said.

Lasarusa Veutibau, a seismologist at Fiji's Mines and Resources Department, said the quake was too deep to have been felt anywhere in the Fiji islands...

[CatWoman]

1. wow

:wow:

it appears these things are on a MAJOR timetable :scared:

[electron_blue]

2. This sounds ominous. And pretty far down. I hope it fizzles out.

[muriel_volestrangler]

3. And a 7.3 quake in the South Atlantic 18 hours ago

A major earthquake measuring magnitude 7.3 shook a remote area of the South Atlantic on Monday but was unlikely to have caused a tsunami, the U.S. Geological Survey said.

USGS geophysicist Bruce Presgrave said the quake's horizontal motion "makes it unlikely for a tsunami".

"Also, the water depth there is rather deep and also at magnitude 7.3 that's usually too small to produce an ocean-wide tsunami even if the other conditions were right.

"So basically, this is a big earthquake a long way from anywhere," Presgrave said.

http://today.reuters.com/business/newsarticle.aspx?type=tnBusinessNews&storyID=nN02229309&imageid=&cap=

[aquart]

5. Fine. But let's keep paying attention.

Lots of attention.

[cliss]

4. Uh-oh. And we're in Oregon,

which is considered to be part of the "ring of fire"; an earthquake zone which runs from Alaska, along the US west coast, all the way down to Tierra Del Fuego. Sounds ominous.

[Radio_Lady]

10. We're supposed to get a 9.0 quake in Oregon -- not IF but WHEN!

Could be five minutes from now, or 500 years from now.

They ran a cable TV show about this -- over and over -- from 1999 to about 2002.

I got to know it by heart because I had insomnia really badly then.

Ever see that show? It was on Ch. 11 or 23 or something like that.

We bought earthquake insurance when we moved here in 1998. I considered it an absolute necessity.

In peace,

Radio_Lady in Oregon

[Deja Q]

6. peak oil, no land to grow crops, bird flu, Iran, war, natl debt, hurricane

and now recurring big earthquakes.

I see a pattern forming:

In one form or another, I think we're all going to die. I think now is the right time for people to start learning how to live. For I doubt we're going to be able to much longer. And I've wasted 33 years of mine.

[MadisonProgressive]

7. Unfortunately, because of DU, I have no life!

[Ediacara]

8. ARGH!

There's no new pattern of recurring big earthquakes! Large earthquakes are no more frequent now than they have been in the past. Bad news created by two big earthquakes in the last year has made the news media and your attention focus on every earthquake that happens.... This quake (Pacific and Bismark plate boundries) and the South Atlantic quake (Scotia and South American plate boundries) are not unusual.

[Algorem]

9. So you're saying earth will break up into chunks from all this pretty soon

is what you seem to be saying.That could be very bad.Say you live on one chunk but your job's on another chunk.How would that work out?

[Radio_Lady]

11. Well, let's see. How about the CHUNK to CHUNK SHUTTLE?

Or chunk-pooling, that might work.

Of course, you'd be sponsored by CHUNKY SOUPS...

God, I have to go to bed or I'll keep churning this crap out all morning long.

Good night and good luck!

[Algorem]

12. Works for me.We never did get the flying cars.

WHERE THE HELL ARE OUR FLYING CARS?