Instruct: Given a question, retrieve relevant passages that answer the question.
Query: What is the strongest recorded earthquake?
The 1960 Valdivia earthquake () or Great Chilean earthquake ("Gran terremoto de Chile") of 22 May is the most powerful earthquake ever recorded. Various studies have placed it at 9.4–9.6 on the moment magnitude scale. It occurred in the afternoon (19:11 GMT, 15:11 local time), and lasted approximately 10 minutes. The resulting tsunami affected southern Chile, Hawaii, Japan, the Philippines, eastern New Zealand, southeast Australia and the Aleutian Islands.
The zone had four of the largest North American earthquakes in recorded history, with moment magnitudes estimated to be as large as 7.0 or greater, all occurring within a three-month period between December 1811 and February 1812. Many of the published accounts describe the cumulative effects of all the earthquakes (known as the New Madrid Sequence); thus finding the individual effects of each quake can be difficult. Magnitude estimates and epicenters are based on interpretations of historical accounts and may vary.
The USGS found that the farthest landslide from the 2011 Virginia earthquake was from the epicenter. This is by far the greatest landslide distance recorded from any other earthquake of similar magnitude. Previous studies of worldwide earthquakes indicated that landslides occurred no farther than from the epicenter of a magnitude 5.8 earthquake. The study suggested that the added information about East Coast earthquakes may prompt a revision of equations that predict ground shaking. "What makes this new study so unique is that it provides direct observational evidence from the largest earthquake to occur in more than 100 years in the eastern U.S. Now that we know more about the power of East Coast earthquakes, equations that predict ground shaking might need to be revised."
A 5.2 earthquake struck Gippsland near Moe at 8.55 pm on 19 June 2012, at a shallow depth of 10.0 km. It was the strongest recorded in Victoria in at least three decades, with some sources suggesting it was the strongest in over a century. It was felt across much of Victoria and parts of New South Wales, with strong shaking reported across the state capital, Melbourne. Some minor building damage was reported in the Latrobe Valley close to the epicentre, and in the eastern suburbs of Melbourne. Around 30 requests for help were made to the SES, mainly due to cracked walls and ceilings, and a number of local businesses lost some stock. Approximately 60 aftershocks were recorded the following day, but most of these were not felt.
The 1886 Charleston earthquake occurred about 9:50 p.m. local time August 31 with an estimated moment magnitude of 6.9–7.3 and a maximum Mercalli intensity of X ("Extreme"). The intraplate earthquake caused 60 deaths and between $5 million and $6 million in damage to 2,000 buildings in the Southeastern United States. It is one of the most powerful and damaging earthquakes to hit the East Coast of the United States. Very little to no historical earthquake activity had occurred, which is unusual for any seismic area.
On 28 December 1908 a strong earthquake of magnitude of 7.1 and a maximum Mercalli intensity of XI, hits Sicily and Calabria. About ten minutes after the earthquake, the sea on both sides of the Strait suddenly withdrew a 12-meter (39-foot) tsunami swept in, and three waves struck nearby coasts. It impacted hardest along the Calabrian coast and inundated Reggio Calabria after the sea had receded 70 meters from the shore. The entire Reggio seafront was destroyed and numbers of people who had gathered there perished. Nearby Villa San Giovanni was also badly hit. Along the coast between Lazzaro and Pellaro, houses and a railway bridge were washed away. The cities of Messina and Reggio Calabria were almost completely destroyed and between 75,000 and 200,000 lives were lost.
According to the National Seismological Service (NSS) of Mexico, the epicenter was located in the Oaxaca-Guerrero border, about 30 km south of Ometepec and 8 km southeast of Cuajinicuilapa. The United States Geological Survey (USGS) reported the epicenter in the state of Oaxaca, about 23 km east of Ometepec and 6 km northwest of San Juan Cacahuatepec. The depth was reported as 15 km by NSS and 20 km by the USGS. The slip of the earthquake was compactly distributed in an area of about 30 km × 30 km.
The East Rift Valley () is an area of rugged terrain formed by the interaction of the Philippine Sea and Eurasian tectonic plates in eastern Taiwan. Most of the area is sparsely populated by Taiwanese aborigines, but there are larger populations in the cities of Hualian and Taidong. The deadliest earthquake in the series struck at 05:34 on 22 October 1951, with an epicentre at 23.9°N 121.7°E, a few kilometres southwest of Hualian City, with a magnitude of 7.3, and was felt throughout Taiwan as well as on Penghu and Jinmen. The second quake to cause significant casualties hit at 02:50 on November 25 of the same year, again with a magnitude of 7.3, this time centred under the town of Yuli, Hualian.
The strongest post monsoon storm ever recorded in Pakistan's recorded history took place on 3 September on a very low pressure system which started to affect parts of Jammu and Kashmir and northeast Pakistani districts of Sialkot, Lahore, Narowal city|Gujrat]], Mandi Bahauddin, Gujranwala, Hafizabad, Sheikhupura. By fourth, the rains became more widespread as the northern Punjab, Pakistan, Azad Kashmir and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa including the twin cities of Rawalpindi/Islamabad, Mangla, Rawalakot, Kotli and Jhelum. The heaviest amounts of rainfall however were recorded on 4 and 5 September as several weather stations broke their 24-hour, 48-hour and total monthly rainfall records for the month of September.
A massive supervolcano erupted at present-day Lake Toba around 70,000 BCE. It is believed to have caused a global volcanic winter and cooling of the climate, and subsequently led to a genetic bottleneck in human evolution, though this is still debated. The 1815 eruption of Mount Tambora and the 1883 eruption of Krakatoa were among the largest in recorded history. The former resulted in 92,000 deaths and created an umbrella of volcanic ash which spread and blanketed parts of the archipelago, and made much of Northern Hemisphere without summer in 1816. The latter produced the loudest sound in recorded history, and resulted in 36,000 deaths that are attributed to the eruption itself and the tsunamis it created. Significant additional effects were also felt around the world years after the eruption. Recent major disasters due to seismic activity include the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and the 2006 Yogyakarta earthquake.
The preliminary analysis of the pattern of seismic-waves radiating from December 26, 2003 earthquake was consistent with the earthquake having been caused by right-lateral strike-slip motion on a north-south oriented fault. The earthquake occurred in a region within which major north-south, right-lateral, strike-slip faults had been previously mapped, and the epicenter is near the previously mapped, north-south oriented Bam Fault. However, field investigations will be necessary to find if the earthquake occurred on the Bam Fault or on another. The Bam earthquake is south of the destructive earthquakes of June 11, 1981 (magnitude 6.6, approximately 3,000 deaths) and July 28, 1981 (magnitude 7.3, approximately 1,500 deaths). These earthquakes were caused by a combination of reverse-motion and strike-slip motion on the north-south oriented Gowk fault.
On 21 October 2014 SGC raised the alert level for the volcanic complex to orange (level 3 of 4) noting that a seismic swarm characterized by 4,300 earthquakes was detected in an 18-hour period. Hypocenters were located 1–4 km southwest of Chiles volcano at depths of 3–5 km and local magnitudes between M 0.2 and 4.5. Inhabitants felt 11 of the events. On 22 October a report noted that the total number of earthquakes recorded on 21 October 2014 reached 7,717, which was the largest number of earthquakes recorded on one day since the installation of a local seismic network in November 2013. Several swarms have occurred in the area since February 2013. By the end of November 2014 over 132,000 earthquakes occurred within a narrow area .5 – 6 km SW of the summit of Chiles.
The 2003 Bam earthquake struck the Kerman province of southeastern Iran at 01:56 UTC (5:26 AM Iran Standard Time) on December 26. The shock had a moment magnitude of 6.6 and a maximum Mercalli intensity of IX ("Violent"). The earthquake was particularly destructive in Bam, with the death toll amounting to at least 26,271 people and injuring up to 30,000. The effects of the earthquake were exacerbated by the use of mud brick as the standard construction medium; many of the area's structures did not comply with earthquake regulations set in 1989.
Throughout the season, many typhoons made landfall at a higher intensity. Typhoon Saomai was the most powerful typhoon to strike China for over 50 years, as a Category 4 typhoon, responsible for over 400 deaths. Typhoon Shanshan struck Japan and became the costliest typhoon this season with a total damage of about $2.5 billion. The Philippines got hit by a total of six typhoons, which saw the highest number since 1974. All six typhoons were responsible for over 1,000 casualties and several millions of damages. Typhoon Ioke, which formed from the Central Pacific, entered the basin and became the strongest Central Pacific hurricane. Moreover, it was stated that the ratio of intense typhoons was 0.73, which was the highest since 1970.
Generally speaking, the intensity of a tropical cyclone is determined by either the storm's maximum sustained winds or lowest barometric pressure. The following table lists the most intense Atlantic hurricanes in terms of their lowest barometric pressure. In terms of wind speed, Hurricane Allen (in 1980) was the strongest Atlantic tropical cyclone on record, with maximum sustained winds of . However, these measurements are suspect since instrumentation used to document wind speeds at the time would likely succumb to winds of such intensity. Nonetheless, their central pressures are low enough to rank them among the strongest recorded Atlantic hurricanes.
The power of large bombs is typically measured in kilotons (kt) or megatons of TNT (Mt). The most powerful bombs ever used in combat were the two atomic bombs dropped by the United States to attack Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and the most powerful ever tested was the Tsar Bomba. The most powerful non-nuclear bomb is Russian "Father of All Bombs" (officially Aviation Thermobaric Bomb of Increased Power (ATBIP)) followed by the United States Air Force's MOAB (officially Massive Ordnance Air Blast, or more commonly known as the "Mother of All Bombs").
The first earthquake hit at 21:17 hours local time on April 24, 1957 and lasted 25 seconds having a magnitude of 7.1 on the moment magnitude scale; a stronger second quake occurred at 04:26 hours on April 25; this one lasted for 60 seconds and had a magnitude of 7.3. The earthquakes also shook many locations around Fethye, the epicenter, including Isparta, Burdur, Tefenni, Acıpayam, Denizli, Nazilli, Aydın, Yatağan, Milas, Bodrum, Ödemiş, Muğla, Marmaris, Köyceğiz, Kaş and Finike as well as the Greek islands of Kos, Symi and Rhodes.
The 2003 Bam earthquake struck Bam and the surrounding Kerman province of south-eastern Iran at 01:56 UTC (5:26 AM Iran Standard Time) on 26 December 2003. The most widely accepted estimate for the magnitude of the earthquake is 6.6 on the moment magnitude scale (Mw); estimated by the United States Geological Survey. The earthquake was particularly destructive, with the death toll amounting to 26,271 people and injuring an additional 30,000. The effects of the earthquake and damage was exacerbated by the fact that the city chiefly consisted of mud brick buildings, many of which did not comply with earthquake regulations set in Iran in 1989, and that most of the city's people were indoors and asleep.
In 2017, a series of earthquakes brought death and destruction to parts of Mexico, including Oaxaca. According to the US Geological Survey, early on September 23, 2017, a magnitude 6.1 earthquake shook Matías Romero, about 275 miles southeast of Mexico City. The epicenter was about 12 miles from Matías Romero and centered approximately between the two even more violent earthquakes felt by Mexico earlier in the month, and is considered an aftershock. On September 8, an 8.1 magnitude quake had struck off of the southern Pacific coast, near Chiapas state. Mexico City, on September 19, then endured a 7.1 magnitude quake, which also marked the 32nd anniversary of the devastating 1985 earthquake, in which more than 10,000 people had been killed.
The state is located in the south of Mexico, bordered by the states of Puebla, Veracruz, Chiapas and Guerrero with the Pacific Ocean to the south. It has a territory of , accounting for less than 5% of Mexico's territory. Here several mountain chains come together, with the elevation varying from sea level to asl, averaging at asl. Oaxaca has one of the most rugged terrains in Mexico, with mountain ranges that abruptly fall into the sea. Between these mountains are mostly narrow valleys, canyons and ravines. Major elevations in the state include Zempoaltepetl ( asl), El Espinazo del Diablo, Nindú Naxinda Yucunino and Cerro Encantado. Oaxaca's has of coastline with nine major bays.
The mountains are mostly formed by the convergence of the Sierra Madre del Sur, the Sierra Madre de Oaxaca and the Sierra Atravesada into what is called the Oaxaca Complex (Complejo Oaxaqueño). The Sierra Madre del Sur runs along the coast with an average width of and a minimum height of asl with peaks over asl. In various regions the chain is locally known by other names, such as the Sierra de Miahuatlán and the Sierra de la Garza. The Sierra Madre de Oaxaca enters the state from the Puebla and Veracruz borders in the Tuxtepec region, running northwest to southeast towards the Central Valleys region, then onto the Tehuantepec area. Local names for parts of this range include Sierra de Tamazulapan, Sierra de Nochixtlan, Sierra de Huautla, Sierra de Juárez, Sierra de Ixtlan and others. Average altitude is asl with peaks over asl and width averages at about . The Sierra Atravesada is a prolongation of the Sierra Madre de Chiapas. This range is not as high as the other two with an average elevation of just over . Most of it is located in the Juchitán district running east-west.
Typhoon Mike was the strongest typhoon to strike the Philippines since Typhoon Irma in November 1981. Mike was also the most severe typhoon to hit the Philippines since Typhoon Ike during September 1984, which killed over 1,000 people. The typhoon destroyed a television broadcast tower, radio towers, electric cables and bridges, which resulted in widespread power outages and several radio stations briefly went off air. Hundreds of villages were also rendered impassable.
Typhoon Omar of 1992, known in the Philippines as Typhoon Lusing, was the strongest and costliest typhoon to strike Guam since Typhoon Pamela in 1976. The cyclone formed on August 23 from the monsoon trough across the western Pacific Ocean. Moving westward, Omar slowly intensified into a tropical storm, although another tropical cyclone nearby initially impeded further strengthening. After the two storms became more distant, Omar quickly strengthened into a powerful typhoon. On August 28, it made landfall on Guam with winds of 195 km/h (120 mph). The typhoon reached its peak intensity the next day, with estimated 1‑minute winds of 240 km/h (150 mph), making it a "super typhoon" according to the Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JTWC). Omar weakened significantly before striking eastern Taiwan on September 4, proceeding into eastern China the next day and dissipating on September 9.
A July 2013 study by US Geological Survey scientist William Ellsworth links earthquakes to wastewater injection sites. In the four years from 2010-2013 the number of earthquakes of magnitude 3.0 or greater in the central and eastern United States increased dramatically. After decades of a steady earthquake rate (average of 21 events/year), activity increased starting in 2001 and peaked at 188 earthquakes in 2011, including a record-breaking 5.7-magnitude earthquake near Prague, Oklahoma which was the strongest earthquake ever recorded in Oklahoma. USGS scientists have found that at some locations the increase in seismicity coincides with the injection of wastewater in deep disposal wells. Injection-induced earthquakes are thought to be caused by pressure changes due to excess fluid injected deep below the surface and are being dubbed “man-made” earthquakes. On September 3, 2016, a 5.8-magnitude earthquake occurred near Pawnee, Oklahoma, followed by nine aftershocks between magnitudes 2.6 and 3.6 within three and one-half hours. The earthquake broke the previous record set five years earlier. Tremors were felt as far away as Memphis, Tennessee, and Gilbert, Arizona. Mary Fallin, the Oklahoma governor, declared a local emergency and shutdown orders for local disposal wells were ordered by the Oklahoma Corporation Commission. Results of ongoing multi-year research on induced earthquakes by the United States Geological Survey (USGS) published in 2015 suggested that most of the significant earthquakes in Oklahoma, such as the 1952 magnitude 5.5 El Reno earthquake may have been induced by deep injection of waste water by the oil industry.
The strongest deep-focus earthquake in seismic record was the magnitude 8.3 Okhotsk Sea earthquake that occurred at a depth of 609 km in 2013. The deepest earthquake ever recorded was a small 4.2 earthquake in Vanuatu at a depth of 735.8 km in 2004.
Although magnitude estimates for the 1959 earthquake vary (the United States Geological Survey recorded the quake at both 7.3 and 7.5, now calculated by the ISC as 7.2 ) the 1959 earthquake is comparable to the 1906 San Francisco earthquake as one of the strongest earthquakes in North America, behind the 1964 magnitude 9.2 Good Friday earthquake in Alaska. The 1959 earthquake is also the most severe earthquake in the Rocky Mountain area of the United States along with the 6.9 magnitude earthquake which struck Idaho in 1983. The landslide caused by this quake was the largest since an earthquake in Wyoming in 1925 caused a landslide amounting to of rock and debris that left 28 people dead. The death toll from the quake was also the highest since the 1925 earthquake and most recent for the Northwestern United States since an earthquake in 1927 that left seven people dead. The 1959 earthquake was also the most damaging earthquake to occur in Montana since the 1935–36 earthquakes that left four people dead. The Hebgen Lake area also experienced earthquakes again in 1964, 1974, 1977 and 1985.
It was the largest British earthquake since the 2002 Dudley earthquake and the strongest in the Dover Straits since a magnitude 4.4 earthquake in 1950. The strongest recorded British earthquake is the 1931 Dogger Bank earthquake, which measured 6.1 on the Richter scale.