The United States Geological Survey
recorded a Magnitude 5.0 Earthquake at a depth of 10.0 km, about 16 km to
the east of the town of Abhayapuri in the Bongaigaon District of Assam State India, slightly after 6.15 pm local time (slightly after 12.45 pm GMT) on Saturday 8 February 2020. The incident was
felt across much of northeast India, as well as in Bhutan and northern Bangladesh, but no damage or casualties have been reported.
The approximate location of the 8 February 2020 Earthquake. USGS.
Earthquake activity in northeast India is caused by the uplift of the Tibetan
Plateau, due to the impact of India into Eurasia to the south. he Indian
Plate is moving northwards at a rate of 5 cm per year, causing it to
impact into Eurasia, which is also moving northward, but only at a rate
of 2 cm per year. The collision of the Indian and Eurasian plates has
lead to the formation of the Himalayan Mountains, the Tibetan Plateau,
and the mountains of southwest China, Central Asia and the Hindu Kush.
Block diagram showing how the impact of the Indian Plate into Eurasia is causing uplift on the Tibetan Plateau. Jayne Doucette/Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution.
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...
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