Italy faces more earthquakes in near future, scientists warn

[inanna]

Source: The Guardian

Saturday 5 November 2016 21.11 GMT

Scientists have warned that central Italy faces a serious risk of suffering further devastating earthquakes in the near future. The region – in central Italy north of Rome – has already been struck by three major tremors over the past few weeks. Seismologists believe a further earthquake could soon strike the region.

“Given what we have discovered about these three related earthquakes, there is a real chance that there is going to be another significant quake in the region in the very near future,” said Richard Walters, a lecturer in earth science at Durham University. “That is well within the bounds of possibility.”

Earthquakes are caused when enormous amounts of energy are released as sections of rock, subjected to intense pressure miles underground, move abruptly. This energy is released in the form of seismic waves, which cause the ground to shake, sometimes with highly destructive consequences.

In western Europe, the region with the highest seismic hazard is the mountainous backbone of peninsular Italy, the Apennines. It has a long record of earthquakes spanning back to Roman times.

Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/nov/05/italy-faces-more-earthquakes-scientists-warn

[Helen Borg]

1. They have to say this...

Remember that time a couple of years ago when the Italian seismologists were sued for having failed to predict a big earthquake? Now they just say that there will be lots of earthquakes to cover their backs. And they may really have evidence for it, not sure.