EQ of M 7.8 - PAKISTAN

Strong earthquake also shallow one ..

2013-09-24 11:29:50.016min ago 27.08 N 65.58 E 20 7.7 PAKISTAN

Magnitude Mw 7.7
Region PAKISTAN
Date time 2013-09-24 11:29:50.0 UTC
Location 27.08 N ; 65.58 E
Depth 20 km
Distances 801 km NE of Muscat, Oman / pop: 797,000 / local time: 15:29:50.0 2013-09-24
283 km NW of Karachi, Pakistan / pop: 11,624,219 / local time: 16:29:50.0 2013-09-24
167 km S of Khārān, Pakistan / pop: 30,841 / local time: 16:29:50.0 2013-09-24
119 km NW of Bela, Pakistan / pop: 20,119 / local time: 16:29:50.0 2013-09-24

www.emsc-csem.org...

7.8-magnitude quake hits Pakistan, tremors felt in Delhi
Reuters | Sep 24, 2013, 05.11 PM IST

New Delhi: Massive earthquake on Tuesday rocked Pakistan parts of Delhi and National Capital Region (NCR).

According to reports, the tremors lasted for as long as 15 seconds and rattled buildings in Delhi and adjoining areas.

daily.bhaskar.com...

(Reuters) - An strong earthquake struck remote western Pakistan on Tuesday and was felt in the Indian capital of New Delhi where buildings shook.

The United States Geological Survey said that a 7.8 magnitude quake struck 145 miles southeast of Dalbandin, in Pakistan's western province of Balochistan.

www.reuters.com...

www.gdacs.org...

7.8 earthquake strikes Pakistan, shaking felt in New Delhi
Published time: September 24, 2013 11:49

An earthquake measuring 7.8 on the Richter scale has struck southwest Pakistan, with tremors felt across the region and as far as New Delhi. The quake struck in Balochistan, just 69 km north-northeast of Arawan, the nearest city.

The US Geological Service has measured the quake at 7.8 magnitude. Pakistan's Geo TV says the earthquake lasted for about two minutes.

The earthquake hit a remote area of the country at a depth of just 15km (9.3mi), but was felt as far away as neighboring India. An ‘orange’ earthquake alert was issued in the wake of the natural disaster.

However, there are 337,980 people within 100km of the epicenter who could potentially be affected, according to the Global Disaster Alert and coordination System (GDACS).

In April this year a 7.9 magnitude earthquake struck the Iran-Pakistan border killing 46 people and injuring some 180 others. Houses collapsed in the disaster, causing people to flee to the streets out of fear.

rt.com...

Hello, Maria. Thanks for posting this one.

It looks like USGS is still reviewing the data to confirm the magnitude. They've had it as various ranges from 7.4 to 7.8 and now it's showing as 7.8 again. As you know, those fractions represent significant differences in energy release. I hope it finally will be resolved to one of the lower figures rather than remain at 7.8. That's a seriously bad quake, especially in a region where so many of the homes are only ordinary masonry and not very strong. But even at 7.4 it will can still be very bad.

ESMC currently shows it as a 7.4, but it's possible they will alter that as well.

Here's earthquake report .com's page on the massive earthquake in Pakistan (their title) which besides the USGS data also has useful info about the local region. It also lists the magnitude updates from USGS.

reply to post by JustMike


Hello00 Mike )

Yes very strong earthquake, USGS say M 7.8 ..

M 7.8 - 69km NNE of Awaran, Pakistan (BETA) 2013-09-24 11:29:48 UTC

comcat.cr.usgs.gov...

GFZ say M 7.6

geofon.gfz-potsdam.de...

2013-09-24 11:29:49.0 27.07 N 65.56 E 20 7.7 PAKISTAN

Magnitude Mw 7.7
Region PAKISTAN
Date time 2013-09-24 11:29:49.0 UTC
Location 27.07 N ; 65.56 E
Depth 20 km
Distances 798 km NE of Muscat, Oman / pop: 797,000 / local time: 15:29:49.0 2013-09-24
284 km NW of Karachi, Pakistan / pop: 11,624,219 / local time: 16:29:49.0 2013-09-24
168 km S of Khārān, Pakistan / pop: 30,841 / local time: 16:29:49.0 2013-09-24
119 km NW of Bela, Pakistan / pop: 20,119 / local time: 16:29:49.0 2013-09-24

www.emsc-csem.org...

reply to post by MariaLida

Still a fair amount of variation on the hypocenter as well. But all of them are quite shallow and that does not bode well, unfortunately. Sadly, it is likely we will see casualties from this one.

The only positive point (if there is one) is that at least now, it's not so bitterly cold there as it will be in another couple of months' time. That will aid survival for any who are trapped inside buildings.

reply to post by JustMike


Unfortunately yes (

Update: The earthquake occurred at 16:30 local time, which is one of the best times for an earthquake to strike… many people will hopefully been out of the house and out of schools, and agricultural workers will still hopefully have been outside.

Update: Roofs of schools in Arawan district collapsed.

Update: Pakistani news report that a lot of houses were damaged in Arawan area. Many people were injured and are on the way to hospital.

Update: Reports from Pakistan indicate that a lot of houses in western Pakistan were damaged. We expect more damage, also in other parts of Pakistan.

Update: USGS rose the Magnitude to 7.8 again. The quake was also felt in UAE and Oman. So far, we don’t have any reports from greater epicenter area.

earthquake-report.com...

Update: USGS is listing this quake as a Red Alert, meaning estimated fatalities could exceed 1,000:

Red alert level for shaking-related fatalities. High casualties are probable and the disaster is likely widespread. Past events with this alert level have required a national or international level response.

Details at the USGS alert page HERE.

I must emphasise that these alert levels are based on geological, population and habitation studies of the affected region/s, the magnitude of the quake and of course its depth. They are not always fully accurate but normally serve as a reasonable guide to what may be expected.

Wooow thats a big one! There is no solar flare..just Ison aproaching..hope every one fine there, keep us update..tq for the breaking..

reply to post by MariaLida


Would love to think thousands of rescuers, medical personnel, construction companies, rehab, and counselors are on the way there dropping in by parachute, choppers and any means available.
But the reality of our governments are that we only do that to bring destruction of our own in war.

Think best we can do now is pray for them and think good thoughts directed that way?

There's still a few going off....my alert said they just got hit with a 5.0......hoping it's calming down a bit......

There seem to be a few more going on still, moving North Easterly. I presume the direction the fault line runs?

Anyone enlighten me?

khimbar
There seem to be a few more going on still, moving North Easterly. I presume the direction the fault line runs?

Anyone enlighten me?

With a quake that powerful and shallow we can expect quite a lot of aftershocks and they could continue for some days or even weeks (generally lessening in strength and frequency over time). It's even possible there may be one or two aftershocks well up into the mag 6 range.

Aftershocks following big quakes can be up to around one mag less than the main shock. ie, a mid-7 mag quake can be followed by many in the mag 5 range and less, and a very small number of quakes in the mag 6 range. Hopefully one or two at the most, but it varies. Sometimes there are no aftershocks that big, other times there can be several. Generally, any shock a magnitude or less than the main shock, and within one length of the main shock's actual rupture length, can be classified as an aftershock.

As for direction, they can occur up or down the fault from the main shock's hypocenter, or even either side of the main fault line -- if the quake even occurs right on a fault line. They don't have to. The aftershocks can be dotted all over the place. Some much depends on the type of fault and hence what type of quake it was.

reply to post by j.r.c.b.

This is far from over, unfortunately. Most people there will be sleeping outside in tents for the next few days, and away from any potential landslide zones if they possibly can. In that region, the people know to expect lots of aftershocks, so even those whose homes are not badly damaged will likely stay out of them for at least a couple of days or so.

USGS have now revised the quake's magnitude down from 7.8 to 7.7. That doesn't sound like much but with big quakes it means quite a difference in the calculation of total energy release. Just to give you all an idea, we know that a magnitude 5.0 can be strong enough to crack walls in some structures and even bring down less stable buildings. (People have been killed in mag 5.0 quakes.)

Now consider this. If we use the USGS How Mjuch Bigger? quake comparison calculator, we find that:
a magnitude 7.7 earthquake is 501.187 times bigger than a magnitude 5.0 on a seismogram, but 11,220.184 times stronger (energy release).

That's right. It would take over 11,000 mag 5.0 quakes to relase the energy of one mag 7.7 quake.

But...
a magnitude 7.8 earthquake is 630.957 times bigger than a magnitude 5.0 on a seismogram, but 15,848.931 times stronger (energy release).

That difference of 0.1 magnitude is like more than 4,000 extra magnitude 5.0 quakes all releasing their energy at the same time.

That's why those fractions matter so much -- especially with big quakes.

reply to post by cheesy


there is a powerfull coronal hole earthfacing tho

reply to post by JustMike


Thank you kindly. I admit I know very little about earthquakes at all.

What do you think of the reports of a new island emerging off the Gwadar, Pakistan coast?

From CNN:

The quake was strong enough to cause a mass 30 to 40 feet high to emerge from the ocean like a small mountain island off the coast of Gwadar, local police official Mozzam Jah said. A large number of people gathered to view the newly formed island, he said.

Zahid Rafi, principal seismologist of the National Seismic Monitoring Center, confirmed the island had formed.

Also reported by RT and Reuter's, who said:

The earthquake was so powerful that it caused the seabed to rise and create a small, mountain-like island about 600 meters (yards) off Pakistan's Gwadar coastline in the Arabian Sea.

Television channels showed images of a stretch of rocky terrain rising above the sea level, with a crowd of bewildered people gathering on the shore to witness the rare phenomenon.

I'm still looking for the television footage...

Unfortunately, at least 45 people has killed (

Deadly earthquake strikes Pakistan's Balochistan
24 September 2013 Last updated at 16:44 GMT

A powerful earthquake of 7.7 magnitude has killed at least 45 people in a remote area of south-west Pakistan, local officials say.

The province is prone to earthquakes, with at least 35 people killed in a 7.8-magnitude tremor that was centred in south-eastern Iran in April.

www.bbc.co.uk...