New Madrid Fault in the Wake of Essay

Total Length: 675 words ( 2 double-spaced pages)

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New Madrid Fault

In the wake of recent seismic activity and devastating earthquakes many people tend to speculate as to where the next big earthquake will occur. Most people point to the west coast of the United States as the obvious choice for an earthquake setting. In doing so we ignore a potentially catastrophic area of seismic activity known as the New Madrid Fault, which is Located in New Madrid, Missouri. Despite its potentially dangerous characteristics this area is often overlooked or dismissed due to its mid-western location. It is however, important to note that big earthquakes have occurred in this area and that as time passes the likelihood of a large earthquake occurring in the New Madrid Fault increases. The New Madrid Fault has caused several large earthquakes, the most significant quakes occurred during the years 1811-1812. According to historical accounts which are based on topographic results and effects the magnitude of the earthquakes measured more than 8.0 on the Richter scale. The results of these earthquakes were very impactful in the topographic sense.
According to analysis and reports; small areas of land were swallowed, lakes were formed and these quakes also changed the course of the Mississippi river. As time passes, the probability of seismic activity resulting in very powerful earthquakes along the New Madrid Fault increases. This probability increased to 40% in the year 2000 and will continue to increase to an astonishing 90% probability when we reach the year 2040. The earth quakes along the New Madrid Fault caused a relatively low figure in terms of lives and property lost during the years 1811-1812 due to the scarcity of population. Currently however, the settings of population are much different and if an earth quake were to occur the damages and deaths could be very significant.

Recent Volcano Activity

According to the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology during the dates of April 12-19 in TAAL Luzon, between 6 and 21 volcanic earthquakes were detected daily. Some of the earthquakes were felt by the….....

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"New Madrid Fault In The Wake Of", 23 April 2011, Accessed.19 May. 2024,
https://www.aceyourpaper.com/essays/new-madrid-fault-wake-84434