Wednesday, 22 April 2020

Magnitude 3.7 Earthquake hits Los Angeles.

The United States Geological Survey recorded a Magnitude 3.7 Earthquake at a depth of about 11.9 km beneath the western part of the Greater Los Angeles urban area, California, slightly before 0.05 am local time (slightly before 7.05 am GMT) on Wednesday 22 April  2020 (slightly before 3.00 am on Monday 9 March GMT). There are no reports of any damage or injuries relating to this quake, but people have reported feeling it across much of southern California.

The approximate location of the 22 April 202 Los Angeles Earthquake. USGS.

California is extremely prone to Earthquakes due to the presence of the San Andreas Fault, a tectonic plate margin that effectively bisects the state. The west of California, including Santa Barbara and Los Angeles, is located on the Pacific Plate, and is moving to the northwest. The east of California, including Fresno and Bakersfield is on the North American Plate, and is moving to the southeast. The plates do not move smoothly past one-another, but constantly stick together then break apart as the pressure builds up. This has led to a network of smaller faults that criss-cross the state, so that Earthquakes can effectively occur anywhere.

 Tectonic boundaries and faults in California and the surrounding area. USGS.

Witness accounts of Earthquakes can help geologists to understand these events and the underlying structures that cause them. If you felt this quake (or if you were in the area but did not, which is also useful information) then you can report it to the United States Geological Survey here.

See also...

https://sciencythoughts.blogspot.com/2020/04/magnitude-52-earthquake-in-mono-county.htmlhttps://sciencythoughts.blogspot.com/2020/03/magnitude-58-earthquake-off-coast-of.html
https://sciencythoughts.blogspot.com/2019/12/urechis-caupo-thousands-of-fat.htmlhttps://sciencythoughts.blogspot.com/2019/11/rockfall-kills-two-climbers-in-sierra.html
https://sciencythoughts.blogspot.com/2019/08/magnitude-590-earthquake-in-inyo-county.htmlhttps://sciencythoughts.blogspot.com/2019/08/rockfall-kills-three-on-californian.html
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