Turkey earthquake: why it was so devastating
Thousands were killed and injured in a strong earthquake that hit southeastern Turkey near the Syrian border and large parts of northern and western Syria in the early hours of Monday morning.
The first earthquake, whose epicenter was near the city of Gaziantep, was followed by another earthquake of almost the same intensity, whose epicenter was north of Gaziantep.
Why the earthquake was so deadly
The earthquake was big. The magnitude of the earthquake was estimated at 7.8, and it was classified as "significant", according to the official scale. Its epicenter was relatively close to the Earth's surface, at a depth of about 18 kilometers, which caused serious damage to buildings on the surface of the Earth.
Professor Joanna four Walker, head of the Institute for risk and Disaster Reduction at University College London, said: "of the deadliest earthquakes in recent years, only two in the last ten years were of the same intensity, and four in the previous ten years.
But, it's not just the force of the tremor that causes destruction.
This earthquake occurred in the early hours of the morning, when people were sleeping in their homes. The durability of buildings is also an important factor.
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Dr Carmen Solana, professor of Volcanology and risk communication at the University of Portsmouth, says: "Unfortunately, the resistant infrastructure is incomplete in southern Turkey, and in Syria, so saving lives now mostly depends on the behavior of rescue teams after an earthquake.
The next twenty-four hours are crucial for finding survivors. After 48 hours, the number of survivors will be significantly reduced, "he said.
This is an area where there has not been a major earthquake or any warning tremors in more than 200 years, so the alert level is expected to be lower than an area more accustomed to dealing with earthquakes.
What caused the earthquake?
The Earth's crust consists of separate parts, called plates, which come together side by side.
On August 13, 1822, the friction of the plates caused an earthquake with a magnitude of 7.4, which is much lower than the magnitude of 7.8 recorded on Monday.
An earthquake of the XIX century caused serious damage to the towns of the region, claiming the lives of 7,000 people in the city of Aleppo alone. The devastating aftershocks of the earthquake lasted for almost a year.
There are already several aftershocks in the wake of the current earthquake, and scientists expect that they will follow the same direction as the previous large earthquake in the region.
How are earthquakes measured?
- Earthquakes are measured by a scale called the moment magnitude scale.
- A tremor of 2.5 degrees or less cannot usually be felt, but it can be detected by scientific instruments.
- Earthquakes of five degrees or more are felt by man and this type causes minor damage.
- The Turkish earthquake, with a magnitude of 7.8, is classified as a strong earthquake, usually causing serious damage, as happened in this case.
- As for earthquakes of more than 8 degrees, they cause huge damage, and can completely destroy population centers.
- The magnitude of the earthquake that occurred off the coast of Japan in 2011 was about 9 degrees, caused widespread damage to the ground, and also triggered a series of giant tsunamis - one of which was the cause of a major accident at a nuclear plant along the coast.
- The magnitude of the largest earthquake of all time was 9.5 degrees, and it happened in Chile in 1960.
