Our country was shaken by two major earthquakes with a magnitude of 7.7 and 7.6 in Kahramanmaraş and aftershocks of 6 or more. The earthquakes that took place one after the other brought the ‘earthquake storm’ rhetoric with them. So what exactly is an ‘earthquake storm’, is our country experiencing an earthquake storm right now?
After the 7.7 earthquake that occurred in Kahramanmaraş at 04.17 in the morning, aftershocks and then the 7.6 magnitude earthquake that occurred at 13.24, we are experiencing one of the greatest pains in our history. ‘earthquake storm’ The expression, on the other hand, started to appear in social media and many news sources after the earthquakes that followed one after another.
Before moving on to the information about whether this situation is an ‘earthquake storm’ or not. what does this expression mean and we need to know its effects in our country.
What exactly is an earthquake storm?
An earthquake storm is defined by Boğaziçi University Kandilli Observatory and Earthquake Research Institute as follows;
“Earthquake storms consist of large numbers of earthquakes that occur in a small area, usually over a period of a few days to a few weeks. In the earthquake group that creates a storm, no earthquake stands out in terms of magnitude compared to the others. Earthquake storms do not have a relationship with a main earthquake. It is observed that earthquake storms occur mostly at depths where small and medium-sized earthquakes occur, as a result of the increase in pressure applied by the fluids in the pores such as fractures and cracks in the rocks.
As it can be understood from the statement, earthquake storm It is different from aftershocks and foreshocks in terms of its structure. In the same source, it is emphasized that earthquake storms should not be accepted as the precursor of any major earthquake.
Are the earthquakes experienced as of today an ‘earthquake storm’?
Turkey, due to its geological structure a country with earthquake storms. Even at the beginning of January, Prof. Dr. Naci Görür shared the information that there was an earthquake storm in Edremit and Kuşadası Bays.
However, there is no official statement or expert testimony that the earthquake disasters we experience today are ‘earthquake storms’. In addition, according to the information text of the Kandilli Observatory, an earthquake intensification It is quite difficult to determine whether it is foreshocks or earthquake storms.
The emphasis is on the knowledge that aftershocks and earthquake storms are completely different from each other. As mentioned in the definition above, earthquake storms are not associated with a main earthquake. However, aftershocks and foreshocks it has a connection with a main earthquake that took place on a particular fault line.
At the moment, the earthquakes in Kahramanmaraş region are evaluated as ‘aftershocks’ by official institutions and information is given.
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