Wellington, New Zealand had a 6.5 (6.2 downgrade) magnitude quake on January 20, 2014, which started a string of large quakes.
Several large earthquakes rocked the Pacific today, January 20, 2014, starting with a very strong 6.5 magnitude quake (downgraded to a 6.2) that struck north of Wellington, New Zealand on the north island.
This quake was followed by a 6.5 quake NW of Hihifo, Tonga. And, this quake was followed by a second 5.9 magnitude quake at Hihifo.
No destructive tsunami was generated by these large quakes, but Hawaii is under a high surf warning.
Needless to say, the Pacific Rim is extremely active.
An Active Day
After the quake in New Zealand, the following 4.0+ quakes occurred worldwide:
- 4.4 Durres, Albania
- 4.3 Durres, Albania
- 4.4 Cusano Mutri, Italy
- 4.2 Durres, Albania
- 4.4 Durres, Albania
- 5.2 Yap, Micronesia
- 5.0 Yap, Micronesia
- 6.5 Hihifo, Tonga
- 5.9 Hihifo, Tonga
The Science Behind The NZ Quake
This is an excellent article about the New Zealand quake. As I have said many times before, USGS is a disappointment, at times, because they do not post ALL the quakes when they occur in the same area, and they always downgrade the larger quakes from their original sesimic readings.
They only posted the 5.9 quake at Tonga, and did NOT post the 6.5 quake. Keeping this from the public is NOT helping the situation.
This article from local, New Zealand reporters recorded the quake as a 7.0 magnitude. It explains why this area is so volatile.
The Earth is on the move, and it’s going to stay this way for a long time coming ….
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