What caused the New Madrid fault?
New Madrid earthquakes of 1811–12 Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. Some Earth scientists suggest that fracturing in this region resulted from stresses brought on by the downcutting of the Mississippi River into the surrounding landscape between 10,000 and 16,000 years ago.
What fault is the New Madrid fault?
New Madrid Seismic Zone – Quaternary Fault Localities. Earthquakes with magnitudes equal to or larger than 2.5 are shown by the yellow dots. (Public domain.) When people think of earthquakes in the United States, they tend to think of the west coast.
What type of fault was the New Madrid earthquake?
The New Madrid seismic zone of the central Mississippi River valley has been interpreted to be a right-lateral strike-slip fault zone with a left stepover restraining bend (Reelfoot reverse fault).
What would happen if the New Madrid Fault had an earthquake?
Over 15,000 people would be killed. An additional 120,000 would be displaced. Nearly 200 schools and over 100 fire stations would be damaged; 37 hospitals and 67 police stations would be inoperable the day after the earthquake in the state of Missouri.
When was the last major earthquake on the New Madrid fault?
The third principal earthquake of the 1811-1812 series. Several destructive shocks occurred on February 7, the last of which equaled or surpassed the magnitude of any previous event. The town of New Madrid was destroyed.
Is the New Madrid fault line still active today?
The zone is active, averaging more than 200 measured seismic events per year. The New Madrid Fault extends approximately 120 miles southward from the area of Charleston, Missouri, and Cairo, Illinois, through Mew Madrid and Caruthersville, following Interstate 55 to Blytheville, then to Marked Tree Arkansas.
When did the New Madrid Fault Line earthquake happen?
This compares a 6 point (plus) earthquake in 1895 that occurs on the New Madrid Seismic Zone to the actual damage zone of the 1994 Northridge earthquake which sent damaging seismic waves throughout Los Angeles, California. A map compares the 1994 Northridge earthquake to the 18995 quake along the New Madrid Seismic Zone.
How big was the earthquake in New Madrid in 1812?
In total, Otto Nuttli reported more than 200 moderate to large aftershocks in the New Madrid region between December 16, 1811, and March 15, 1812: ten of these were greater than about 6.0; about one hundred were between M5.0 and 5.9; and eighty-nine were in the magnitude 4 range.
How is the New Madrid earthquake simulation done?
Your browser does not support the video tag. The solid straight line in the middle of the New Madrid seismic zone is the surface projection of the modeled fault, which ruptures in the simulation. The colors are keyed to the peak intensity of ground velocity at the surface.
Is the New Madrid Fault Line in Tennessee?
It also extends into parts of Tennessee. And there is worse news yet, the fault line offers up extremely shallow earthquakes. An earthquake prompted by the New Madrid Seismic Fault Line occurs at 3 and 15 miles depth.