Tuesday 26 March 2013

Earthquake off the coast of Tunisia.

On Monday 25 March 2013, slighlty before 11.10 pm local time (slightly before 10.10 pm, GMT) the United States Geological Survey recoreded a Magnitude 4.1 Earthquake at a depth of 15.7 km, 67 km offshore from Monastir on the Tunisian coast. This is a moderately large Earthquake, but some way from land, so it is unlikely to have caused any damage or casualties, and may not have been felt by anyone.

The location of the 25 March Earthquake. USGS.

Tunisia is not a country generally associated with Earthquakes, but is close to an active tectonic margin, with the boundary between the African and Eurasian Plates running along the north coast of the country, then along the south coast of Sicilly. This is a convergent margin, with the two continental masses being pushed together by the northward movement of Africa. This is a convergent margin, with Africa being partially subducted beneath the Eaurasian Plate and fuelling the volcanoes of southern and western Italy, and compression and folding of the southern part of the Eurasian Plate, causing uplift in the Appenines and Alps.


Follow Sciency Thoughts on Facebook