The United States Geological Survey recorded
a Magnitude 5.1 Earthquake at a depth of 169.4 km approximately 10 km to
the northeast of the town of Aratoca in Santander Department,
Colombia, slightly before 8.00 am local time (slightly before 1.00 am GMT) on Monday 8 January 2018. There are no
reports of
any damage or casualties associated with this event, but people
have reported feeling the event across much of northern Colombia and
parts of western Venezuela.
The approximate location of the 8 January 2018 Santander Earthquake. USGS.
Colombia
is on the west coast of South America and the western margin of the
South American Plate, close to where the Nazca Plate, which underlies
part of the east Pacific, is being subducted along the Peru-Chile
Trench. The Nazca Plate passes under the South American Plate as it
sinks into the Earth, this is not a smooth process and the plates
repeatedly stick together then break apart as the pressure builds up,
causing Earthquakes. As the Nazca Plate sinks further it is partially
melted by the friction and the heat of the Earth's interior. Some of
this melted material then rises through the overlying South American
Plate, fuelling the volcanoes of Colombia and neighbouring countries.
The subduction of the Nazca Plate beneath the South American Plate, and how it causes Earthquakes and volcanoes. SIO SEARCH.
Witness
accounts of Earthquakes can help geologists to understand these events,
and the structures that cause them. The international non-profit
organisation Earthquake Report is interested in hearing from people who may have felt this event; if you felt this quake then you can report it to Earthquake Report here.
See also...
