The magnitude 7.8 earthquake that struck southern Turkiye on the morning of the 6th (local time) is the most powerful earthquake recorded in Turkiye in the past 84 years, CNN reported.
According to a report on the day, the US Geological Survey (USGS) said the earthquake was of the same magnitude as the earthquake that struck eastern Turkiye in 1939, 84 years ago, killing about 30,000 people.
Carl Lang, professor of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences at Georgia Tech University, explained in an interview with CNN that “Turkiye, where the earthquake occurred, is a fault zone prone to seismic activity.”
“The magnitude of the vibration felt at the ground level depends not only on the amount of energy released, that is, the magnitude of the earthquake, but also on how far below the surface the energy is released (the depth of the epicenter),” he said. If it is an earthquake, it can be very dangerous,” he warned.
“The unusual thing is that today’s earthquake is close to the surface of the earth and has a very large scale,” he emphasized.
Earthquakes of this magnitude are rare, according to CNN. There have been seven earthquakes of magnitude 7.0 or greater in the past 25 years. A 7.8-magnitude earthquake occurs in all regions of the world on average less than five times a year, the broadcaster explained.
Meanwhile, more than 300 people have died and about 2,000 have been injured so far in a powerful earthquake that struck the border between southern Turkey and northern Syria.
The Turkiye Disaster Management Agency and the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) reported that an earthquake of magnitude 7.8 occurred at 4:17 am (10:17 Korean time) in an area about 33 km away from Gaziantep, a key industrial city in southern Turkey. told About 10 minutes later, at 4:26 am, an aftershock of magnitude 6.7 followed. Turkish authorities said there were at least 20 aftershocks, the most powerful of which occurred in broad daylight with a magnitude of 6.6.
Source: Donga
Mark Jones is a world traveler and journalist for News Rebeat. With a curious mind and a love of adventure, Mark brings a unique perspective to the latest global events and provides in-depth and thought-provoking coverage of the world at large.