700 words essay
Gorkha earthquake, Kathmandu, Nepal, 2015
Google Earth coordinates: 27ᵒ 43’02.07” N 85ᵒ 19’26. 26” E elev 4293 ft eye alt 51608 ft
The earthquake I decided to research about was in Nepal. It would happen on April 25th, 2015; this earthquake is called Gorkha earthquake. The google earth coordinates are 27ᵒ 43’02.07” N 85ᵒ 19’26. 26” E elev 4293 ft eye alt 51608 ft. This would be a very dangerous and acute tremor; it would happen near the capital city called Kathmandu which is located in central Nepal.
This earthquake’s initial shock would have a magnitude of 7.8.This tremor would be felt across eastern and central Nepal as well as northwestern Bangladesh and most of Ganges River plain in northern India. After about an hour from the first initial shock would be two other large aftershocks, they would have magnitudes of 6.6 and 6.7. There would be a few dozen mini aftershocks within the coming days of the earthquake. The last aftershock would be on May 12, it would hit the east-northeast side of Kathmandu; it would have a magnitude of 7.3. In the end, this earthquake would kill about 9,000 people and injure thousands of innocent people. It would also destroy about 600,000 buildings in Kathmandu; some of these structures would be the Taleju temple and the Dharahara Tower. It would affect quite a few other countries such as China, Bangladesh and India as well.
This earthquake would cause other natural disasters. It would include landslides that would affect rural villages and Kathmandu. The earthquake would cause an avalanche to occur on Mount Everest. It would kill about 19 people and it would cause many campers to be stranded on the Mount Everest camp. The early damage estimates would be about $10 billion dollars. This earthquake would trigger a state of emergency and the Nepalese army would be there to rescue people and help find missing people. Nepal would ask for international help/rescue; they would receive this from China, India, UK and US. There would also be a fundraiser called “Nepal Earthquake 2015 Flash Appeal”, it was organized by the UN. It would quickly raise about $330 million dollars.
The earthquakes and the aftershocks were caused by thrust faulting. “Thrust faulting is the most common type of faulting within continents undergoing tectonic compression. It is a low-angled reverse fault, that is one with a dip of less then 45ᵒ; the movement is more horizontal then vertical.” (Grotzinger, 2014) The thrust faulting would happen in the Indus-Yarlung suture zone; it is a narrow east-west region that ranges the span of the Himalayan area. The Himalayan area has the most seismic activity throughout the world. “The earthquake relieved compressional pressure between the Eurasian tectonic plate and the Indian section of the Indo-Australian Plate, which subducts (underthrusts) the Eurasian Plate. Subduction in the Himalayas occurs at an average rate of 1.6–2 inches (4–5 cm) annually.” (Rafferty, 2018)
The purpose of research on this earthquake is for scientists to understand the future of seismic hazard in a particular region and make appropriate precautions to help keep people safe. Earth scientists from ETH Zurich have recently learned that this nation may still be at risk for stronger earthquakes in the future. They have obtained models of the collision area between the Eurasian and Indian plates in the region of the Himalayas. These scientists have accomplished the first high-resolution simulations of earthquake cycles. These simulations help scientists experiment what happens in a cross-section of the rupture zone. They have learned that during this earthquake there was an unfinished rupture of the key Himalayan fault that separated the two continental plates. They would also learn that the frontal, surface part of the rupture zone where the Indian plate subducts under the Eurasian plate didn’t fall and is still under stress.
ETH Zurich would use digital topography datasets like the Euler mainframe computer. The two dimensional model would show the “Gorkha earthquake reduced the stress level in part of the rupture zone, tension actually increased in the frontal section close to the foot of the Himalayas. The apparent paradox is that 'medium-sized' earthquakes such as Gorkha can create the conditions for an even larger earthquake.”(Nepal Earthquake, 2019) All in all, these scientists can’t truly detect when there will be another extreme earthquake like the one in 2015 but they truly have come along way from the past in learning new information about earthquakes.
References:
1. John, Grotzinger (2014). Understanding Earth: Seventh edition. W.H. Freeman and Company: Macmillan Higher Education
2. Rafferty, J. P. (2018, April 18). Nepal earthquake of 2015. Retrieved from https:// www.britannica.com/topic/Nepal-earthquake-of-2015 (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.
3. Nepal earthquake: Waiting for the complete rupture. (2019, January 16). Retrieved from https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/01/190116115518.htm (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.