Late Tuesday, a tsunami warning was briefly sparked when an earthquake with a magnitude of 7.8 hit the coast of Southern Alaska.
Weather officials denied any evidence of there being a destructive repercussions as a result of the earthquake, saying that there will be no incoming destructive waves. Centered in the Pacific Ocean the earthquake took place around 10:12 p.m. local time, only 60 miles southeast of Perryville on the lightly populated Alaskan Penninsula.
According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, a tsunami warning was initially sent out to South Alaska and the Alaskan Penninsula but was canceled early Wednesday.
James Gridley, a director at the National Tsunami Warning Center, stated the reason behind the cancelation of the warning advisories was because it did not look like it was becoming a “large wave or any larger.”
Despite the turnout of the Tsunami warning, the earthquake made a much more notable appearance. Reports saying that strong shaking took place on the peninsula and weakened as it reached 300 miles northeast of the center of the earthquake.
With a depth of 28 kilometers, a relatively hallow depth as reported by USGS.
CNN meteorologist, Allison Chinchar includes that “anything below 70 kilometers is considered a shallow quake – shallow earthquakes often cause the most damage, compared to the ones that are deeper, regardless of the strength.”
The earthquake was later followed with over twenty aftershocks from late Tuesday to early Wednesday. The magnitude of these shocks ranged from 2.8 to 6.1.
Written by: Brielle R. Buford
Sources
CNN: Magnitude 7.8 earthquake strikes off coast of Alaska
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