Offshore Peru magnitude 6.1 earthquake (2:05 AM, 29 June 2024)

This seismogram is from the Otavalo seismic station in Ecuador. The noise is from a magnitude 6.1 earthquake that hit offshore Peru. The quake occurred at 2:05 AM, local time, on 29 June 2024. The epicenter was about 42 kilometers southwest of (offshore from) the town of Atiquipa, Peru. The hypocenter was about 20 kilometers deep. Shaking resulted from thrust faulting along a northwest-southeast striking fault zone. This is the strongest aftershock so far following a magnitude 7.2 earthquake the previous night.

This was a subduction zone earthquake. Subduction zones have a tectonic plate composed of oceanic lithosphere diving underneath a plate of continental or oceanic lithosphere. In this area, the oceanic Nazca Plate is subducting eastward beneath continental lithosphere of the South American Plate. Subduction zones have the most powerful tectonic quakes in the world. Quakes and volcanism are common geologic hazards in such settings. The subduction zone itself is a deep seafloor trough adjacent to the western margin of South America - the Peru-Chile Trench. Mountain building occurs next to the trench - the Andes Mountains. Active and potentially active volcanoes occur throughout the Andes.
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Info. at:
earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/us6000n948/exec...
and
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peru–Chile_Trench
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An earthquake is a natural shaking or vibrating of the Earth caused by sudden fault movement and a rapid release of energy. Earthquake activity is called "seismicity". The study of earthquakes is called "seismology". The actual underground location of an earthquake is the hypocenter, or focus. The site at the Earth's surface, directly above the hypocenter, is the epicenter. Minor earthquakes may occur before a major event - such small quakes are called foreshocks. Minor to major quakes after a major event are aftershocks.

Most earthquakes occur at or near tectonic plate boundaries, such as subduction zones, mid-ocean ridges, collision zones, and transform plate boundaries. They also occur at hotspots - large subsurface mantle plumes (Examples: Hawaii, Yellowstone, Iceland, Afar).

Earthquakes generate four types of shock waves: P-waves, S-waves, Love waves, and Rayleigh waves. P-waves and S-waves are body waves - they travel through solid rocks. Love waves and Rayleigh waves travel only at the surface - they are surface waves. P-waves are push-pull waves that travel quickly and cause little damage. S-waves are up-and-down waves (like flicking a rope) that travel slowly and cause significant damage. Love waves are side-to-side surface waves, like a slithering snake. Rayleigh waves are rotational surface waves, somewhat like ripples from tossing a pebble into a pond.

Earthquakes are associated with many specific hazards, such as ground shaking, ground rupturing, subsidence (sinking), uplift (rising), tsunamis, landslides, fires, and liquefaction.

Some famous major earthquakes in history include: Shensi, China in 1556; Lisbon, Portugal in 1755; New Madrid, Missouri in 1811-1812; San Francisco, California in 1906; Anchorage, Alaska in 1964; and Loma Prieta, California in 1989.

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Taken on: June 29, 2024

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