A 6.1 magnitude earthquake

[tonado]

http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/08/3...e.ap/index.html

 

A 6.1 magnitude earthquake struck China's southwestern Sichuan province Saturday, killing three people, state media said.

 

The earthquake hit 31 miles southeast of Panzhihua city in the southwestern corner of Sichuan at 4:30 p.m., the official Xinhua News Agency said.

[Guest WenDylan]

http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/08/3...e.ap/index.html

 

A 6.1 magnitude earthquake struck China's southwestern Sichuan province Saturday, killing three people, state media said.

 

The earthquake hit 31 miles southeast of Panzhihua city in the southwestern corner of Sichuan at 4:30 p.m., the official Xinhua News Agency said.

It just never ends does it?

[SheLikesME?]

It just keeps cracking up.

[Sebastian]

I heard 5.7 this morning on NPR news... maybe different place, or it was 'remeasured' . I'm not quibbling, it's all a shock to me..

[georgeandli]

Just asking, does this have anything to do with the 3 gorges dam? I saw when proposed the weight of it would/could cause problems.

[Guest Tony n Terrific]

Here is update on this tragedy. 15 are now dead and a 100 injured. It hit about 4:30 PM China time.

 

http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2008-08...ent_6984098.htm

Edited August 30, 2008 by Tony n Terrific (see edit history)

[Corbin]

Just asking, does this have anything to do with the 3 gorges dam? I saw when proposed the weight of it would/could cause problems.

I don't see how the construction (weight) of the dam could cause this and besides if I remember correctly this is an earthquake zone.

[amanda1969]

Here is update on this tragedy. 21 are now dead and 113 injured.

 

http://news.sohu.com/s2008/panzhihua/

Edited August 31, 2008 by amanda1969 (see edit history)

[shushuweiwei]

Just asking, does this have anything to do with the 3 gorges dam? I saw when proposed the weight of it would/could cause problems.

I don't see how the construction (weight) of the dam could cause this and besides if I remember correctly this is an earthquake zone.

 

There was a geologic study done a few years ago after a quake in India that strongly suggested that the weight of the water behind several dams had been a key factor in initiating the quake. Yes, it's an earthquake zone, but that just means there are faults and abutting tectonic plates. It doesn't mean that we can't do things that effect the movement of the plates and initiate more events.

 

Activist geologists in China have cited the Indian incident in their pleas to the Chinese govt to stop the rapid dam building.

 

By the way, it may not be 3 gorges but the river running through the last quake zone is the most heavily dammed river in the world, I believe. The geologists had cited that river as an area of concern for dam activity initiating quakes.

Edited August 31, 2008 by shushuweiwei (see edit history)

[chilton747]

Just asking, does this have anything to do with the 3 gorges dam? I saw when proposed the weight of it would/could cause problems.

I don't see how the construction (weight) of the dam could cause this and besides if I remember correctly this is an earthquake zone.

 

There was a geologic study done a few years ago after a quake in India that strongly suggested that the weight of the water behind several dams had been a key factor in initiating the quake. Yes, it's an earthquake zone, but that just means there are faults and abutting tectonic plates. It doesn't mean that we can't do things that effect the movement of the plates and initiate more events.

 

Activist geologists in China have cited the Indian incident in their pleas to the Chinese govt to stop the rapid dam building.

 

By the way, it may not be 3 gorges but the river running through the last quake zone is the most heavily dammed river in the world, I believe. The geologists had cited that river as an area of concern for dam activity initiating quakes.

 

I find this very interesting Joe. Thanks!!

[Corbin]

Just asking, does this have anything to do with the 3 gorges dam? I saw when proposed the weight of it would/could cause problems.

I don't see how the construction (weight) of the dam could cause this and besides if I remember correctly this is an earthquake zone.

 

There was a geologic study done a few years ago after a quake in India that strongly suggested that the weight of the water behind several dams had been a key factor in initiating the quake. Yes, it's an earthquake zone, but that just means there are faults and abutting tectonic plates. It doesn't mean that we can't do things that effect the movement of the plates and initiate more events.

 

Activist geologists in China have cited the Indian incident in their pleas to the Chinese govt to stop the rapid dam building.

 

By the way, it may not be 3 gorges but the river running through the last quake zone is the most heavily dammed river in the world, I believe. The geologists had cited that river as an area of concern for dam activity initiating quakes.

 

I find this very interesting Joe. Thanks!!

Yes interesting and I would love to see some info on this theory that that the weight of the water behind the dams could be the cause of additional earthquakes. If the weight causes additional earthquakes then the fault line must be more fragile than thought. Also how close is the three gorges dam to these recent earthquakes? Is it even finished and up and running?

[chilton747]

Just asking, does this have anything to do with the 3 gorges dam? I saw when proposed the weight of it would/could cause problems.

I don't see how the construction (weight) of the dam could cause this and besides if I remember correctly this is an earthquake zone.

 

There was a geologic study done a few years ago after a quake in India that strongly suggested that the weight of the water behind several dams had been a key factor in initiating the quake. Yes, it's an earthquake zone, but that just means there are faults and abutting tectonic plates. It doesn't mean that we can't do things that effect the movement of the plates and initiate more events.

 

Activist geologists in China have cited the Indian incident in their pleas to the Chinese govt to stop the rapid dam building.

 

By the way, it may not be 3 gorges but the river running through the last quake zone is the most heavily dammed river in the world, I believe. The geologists had cited that river as an area of concern for dam activity initiating quakes.

 

I find this very interesting Joe. Thanks!!

Yes interesting and I would love to see some info on this theory that that the weight of the water behind the dams could be the cause of additional earthquakes. If the weight causes additional earthquakes then the fault line must be more fragile than thought. Also how close is the three gorges dam to these recent earthquakes? Is it even finished and up and running?

 

It's the same river......the Yangtze River.

[shushuweiwei]

Just asking, does this have anything to do with the 3 gorges dam? I saw when proposed the weight of it would/could cause problems.

I don't see how the construction (weight) of the dam could cause this and besides if I remember correctly this is an earthquake zone.

 

There was a geologic study done a few years ago after a quake in India that strongly suggested that the weight of the water behind several dams had been a key factor in initiating the quake. Yes, it's an earthquake zone, but that just means there are faults and abutting tectonic plates. It doesn't mean that we can't do things that effect the movement of the plates and initiate more events.

 

Activist geologists in China have cited the Indian incident in their pleas to the Chinese govt to stop the rapid dam building.

 

By the way, it may not be 3 gorges but the river running through the last quake zone is the most heavily dammed river in the world, I believe. The geologists had cited that river as an area of concern for dam activity initiating quakes.

 

I find this very interesting Joe. Thanks!!

Yes interesting and I would love to see some info on this theory that that the weight of the water behind the dams could be the cause of additional earthquakes. If the weight causes additional earthquakes then the fault line must be more fragile than thought. Also how close is the three gorges dam to these recent earthquakes? Is it even finished and up and running?

 

Like I said, I don't think it's 3 gorges that is implicated in the recent quakes. I think the water behind these large dams represents an enormous load. I'm not sure that the faults would have to be considered fragile to be moved by such a massive weight. Do you realize how much the water in the reservoir behind 3 gorges will weigh when it's full? The water only needs to initiate a slip it's not supplying all the energy for the quake.

 

The phenomenon has a name and an acronym RIS, reservoir induced seismicity.

 

"A recent article in Scientific American, explained that the reservoir sits on two major faults: the Jiuwanxi and the Zigui¨CBadong. According to Fan Xiao, a geologist at the Bureau of Geological Exploration and Exploitation of Mineral Resources in Sichuan province, changing the water level will strain the fault lines.

 

"When you alter the fault line's mechanical state it can cause fault activity to intensify and induce earthquakes," he said.

 

Engineers in China blame dams for at least 19 earthquakes over the past five decades, ranging from small tremors to one near Guangdong province's Xinfengjiang dam in 1962 that registered magnitude 6.1 on the Richter scale¡ªsevere enough to topple houses.

 

Since the reservoir began to fill in 2003, the Three Gorges dam has induced seismic activity within the reservoir area. The respected 21st Century Business Herald reported in 2003 that, according to Xu Guangbin, director of the Hubei Seismological Monitoring and Prevention Centre, "as many as 1,000 micro-earthquakes have occurred in the Three Gorges reservoir area since June 7, with the biggest recorded at 2.1 on the Richter scale," but that "these minor tremors have had no significant impact on the dam or reservoir, and have caused no damage."

 

from http://www.probeinternational.org/catalog/...09&cat_id=7

 

"No one knows how local seismic faults will react to the incredible mass of water behind Three Gorges Dam. Like heavy snow on an overloaded roof, the weight of water blocked by dams can cause existing cracks in Earth's crust to slip, resulting in earthquakes. Faults tend to slip more often when a nearby giant reservoir is filled with water. The largest was a magnitude 6.5 triggered by the Konya reservoir in Turkey. That earthquake killed 200 people in December 1967. "

 

from http://www.gi.alaska.edu/ScienceForum/ASF14/1465.html

 

"The researcher says there have been recorded cases in several countries of dam construction causing earthquakes. Large-scale mining, he believes, can sometimes produce the same result.

...

"There's no question that if you dig a big enough reservoir, you're going to get earthquakes.

 

"The Three Gorges Dam in China is going to be a big problem," he told BBC News Online."

 

from http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/1974736.stm

[shushuweiwei]

Just asking, does this have anything to do with the 3 gorges dam? I saw when proposed the weight of it would/could cause problems.

I don't see how the construction (weight) of the dam could cause this and besides if I remember correctly this is an earthquake zone.

 

There was a geologic study done a few years ago after a quake in India that strongly suggested that the weight of the water behind several dams had been a key factor in initiating the quake. Yes, it's an earthquake zone, but that just means there are faults and abutting tectonic plates. It doesn't mean that we can't do things that effect the movement of the plates and initiate more events.

 

Activist geologists in China have cited the Indian incident in their pleas to the Chinese govt to stop the rapid dam building.

 

By the way, it may not be 3 gorges but the river running through the last quake zone is the most heavily dammed river in the world, I believe. The geologists had cited that river as an area of concern for dam activity initiating quakes.

 

I find this very interesting Joe. Thanks!!

Yes interesting and I would love to see some info on this theory that that the weight of the water behind the dams could be the cause of additional earthquakes. If the weight causes additional earthquakes then the fault line must be more fragile than thought. Also how close is the three gorges dam to these recent earthquakes? Is it even finished and up and running?

 

It's the same river......the Yangtze River.

It's a smaller river that runs through the epicenter of the May quake that is the most heavily dammed. I will try to find the name when I wake up.

[Li & John]

Yahoo News just said, that their are 25 dead and 100,000 homes that are damaged or destroyed and has affected at least 600,000 residents.

Edited August 31, 2008 by Li & John (see edit history)