B.C.'s next massive earthquake could be more dramatic than first thought
Scientists are getting much more detailed data about a major fault
A new study suggests that the next major earthquake to hit British Columbia could be even more powerful than previously thought.
The study, published in the journal "Nature Geoscience", looked at data from a network of seismic sensors that have been installed along the Cascadia Subduction Zone, a major fault line that runs along the west coast of North America.
The data showed that the fault is much more complex than previously thought, with a number of smaller faults that could all contribute to a major earthquake.
"This new data is giving us a much better understanding of the Cascadia Subduction Zone, and it's showing us that the next earthquake could be more powerful than we thought," said study author Dr. John Cassidy, a geophysicist at the University of Victoria.
The Cascadia Subduction Zone is a major fault line that runs along the west coast of North America from northern California to southern British Columbia. The last major earthquake on the fault occurred in 1700, and scientists have been warning for years that another major earthquake is overdue.
The new study suggests that the next earthquake could be even more powerful than the 1700 earthquake, which had a magnitude of 9.0. The study found that the fault could produce an earthquake as large as magnitude 9.5.
"This is a very sobering finding," said Cassidy. "We need to be prepared for the possibility of a major earthquake on the Cascadia Subduction Zone, and we need to take steps now to mitigate the damage."
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