2002 Molise earthquake
Encyclopedia
The 2002 Molise earthquake was a magnitude 5.9 earthquake
that hit the Italian
regions of Molise
and Puglia on October 31, 2002 at 10:32:58 (UTC). The depth of the earthquake was 10 km (6.2 mi).
Most of the victims of the earthquake suffered when a school collapsed in the town of San Giuliano di Puglia
. 26 of the 51 pupils there died, together with one of their teachers. In particular, none of the 9 boys of the 4th class (born in 1996) survived.
:
Earthquake
An earthquake is the result of a sudden release of energy in the Earth's crust that creates seismic waves. The seismicity, seismism or seismic activity of an area refers to the frequency, type and size of earthquakes experienced over a period of time...
that hit the Italian
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
regions of Molise
Molise
Molise is a region of Southern Italy, the second smallest of the regions. It was formerly part of the region of Abruzzi e Molise and now a separate entity...
and Puglia on October 31, 2002 at 10:32:58 (UTC). The depth of the earthquake was 10 km (6.2 mi).
Most of the victims of the earthquake suffered when a school collapsed in the town of San Giuliano di Puglia
San Giuliano di Puglia
San Giuliano di Puglia is a small town and comune in the province of Campobasso, in the region of Molise, in Italy.Even though it is now part of Molise, its name still recalls its former administrative and cultural association with the region of Apulia .It is mainly an agricultural centre.- 2002...
. 26 of the 51 pupils there died, together with one of their teachers. In particular, none of the 9 boys of the 4th class (born in 1996) survived.
Tectonics
According to the United States Geological SurveyUnited States Geological Survey
The United States Geological Survey is a scientific agency of the United States government. The scientists of the USGS study the landscape of the United States, its natural resources, and the natural hazards that threaten it. The organization has four major science disciplines, concerning biology,...
:
Preliminary moment tensor solutions for this earthquake imply that the shock occurred as the result of movement on a strike-slip fault. The fault would be either a north-south, left-lateral fault or an east-west, right-lateral fault. Some geologistGeologistA geologist is a scientist who studies the solid and liquid matter that constitutes the Earth as well as the processes and history that has shaped it. Geologists usually engage in studying geology. Geologists, studying more of an applied science than a theoretical one, must approach Geology using...
s have hypothesized that a major component of the relative motion between the African plate and EurasianEurasian PlateThe Eurasian Plate is a tectonic plate which includes most of the continent of Eurasia , with the notable exceptions of the Indian subcontinent, the Arabian subcontinent, and the area east of the Chersky Range in East Siberia...
plate is accommodated on a north-south, left-lateral, boundary that passes near the epicenterEpicenterThe epicenter or epicentre is the point on the Earth's surface that is directly above the hypocenter or focus, the point where an earthquake or underground explosion originates...
of the earthquake.
The boundary is thought to accommodate slip of 5 - 10 mm/ year. The preliminary focal-mechanismsFocal mechanismThe focal mechanism of an earthquake describes the inelastic deformation in the source region that generates the seismic waves. In the case of a fault-related event it refers to the orientation of the fault plane that slipped and the slip vector and is also known as a fault-plane solution...
are consistent with this model. It is noteworthy, however, that many destructive earthquakes in Italy occur as the result of deformation of the earth's crust that is not related in a simple way to the present-day movements of the African and Eurasian plates. Until detailed studies of this earthquake are completed, hypotheses on the earthquake's relationship to large-scale plate-tectonic processes are speculative.