An 8.2 magnitude earthquake has struck Perryville, Alaska. The quake must have had a depth of 46.66 km.
The powerful earthquake was located about 91 miles southeast of Perryville, Alaska. The quake occurred around 10:15 p.m., Wednesday, local time, the USGS reported, according to CNN.
Tsunami warnings have also been issued for southern Alaska and for Hawaii.
It is under consideration whether a tsunami alert will be issued for Wellington, New Zealand.
In retrospect, there have also been aftershocks with a magnitude of six.
Japanese authorities are investigating whether their coast is in danger of a tsunami.
The Richter scale is used to measure the strength of an earthquake. Earthquakes for Richter number eight are described as large earthquakes with catastrophic damage, according to Large Norwegian encyclopedia
92 earthquakes in 24 hours
This is also confirmed by professor at NTNU, Alex Hanssen, who is an expert on earthquakes and natural disasters.
– An earthquake of 8.2 is enormous, Hansen says to Dagbladet.
Andreas Wüstefeld, at Norsar, which specializes in seismology and seismic monitoring, explains that an earthquake with a magnitude of eight can cause major damage to buildings, and structures are likely to be destroyed.
THE EARTHQUAKE: Here, the earthquake with a magnitude of 8.2 has hit. Photo: USGS
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– It is harmful in large areas, and can be felt over a large area. But this earthquake was under the sea and was 46 kilometers deep, Wüstefeld told Dagbladet.
He further explains that all the earthquakes that have been logged and that have a magnitude of over eight, have occurred in the Pacific Ocean. Both along the coast of North and South America, and over to Asia and countries like Japan. They are very often quite deep.
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– It happens because the earth plates press together, and create earthquakes. The plates located in the Pacific Ocean are quite large. That is also why there are such strong earthquakes there, he says.
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