2007–2008 Nazko earthquakes

2007–2008 Nazko earthquakes

The 2007–2008 Nazko earthquakes were a series of small volcanic earthquakes measuring less than 4. 0 on the Richter magnitude scale. They took place in the sparsely populated Nazko area of the Central Interior of British Columbia, Canada starting on October 9, 2007 and ending on June 12, 2008. They occurred just west of Nazko Cone, a small tree-covered cinder cone that last erupted about 7,200 years ago.

About 2007–2008 Nazko earthquakes in brief

Summary 2007–2008 Nazko earthquakesThe 2007–2008 Nazko earthquakes were a series of small volcanic earthquakes measuring less than 4. 0 on the Richter magnitude scale. They took place in the sparsely populated Nazko area of the Central Interior of British Columbia, Canada starting on October 9, 2007 and ending on June 12, 2008. They occurred just west of Nazko Cone, a small tree-covered cinder cone that last erupted about 7,200 years ago. The earthquake swarm occurred at the eastern end of a known volcanic zone called the Anahim Volcanic Belt. The character of the seismic waves indicated that the swarm originated from a magmatic source. It could have formed as a result of rock fracturing at the tip of a dike andor by movement along fault planes due to changes in the local stress field by the expansion and movement of magma. The swarm is interpreted to have originated 25 km below the surface. No volcanic eruption is likely because of the number and small size of the Nazko Earthquakes.

Other recent earthquakes in North America that have been attributed to magma but did not result in a volcanic eruption include the 2003 earthquakes under Lake Tahoe in the U.S. state of California and a 2004 earthquake swarm at Jordan Craters in the state of Oregon. In the first seismic phase from October 9 to November 1, 2007, a total of 153 earthquakes took place. During the second seismic phase between September 25 and June 25, 2008, 4428, 4,428 earthquakes occurred. These two seismic episodes were cross-correlated by scientists to understand the development of the earthquake swarm. The last earthquake was on October 12, 2007 in Prince George, Canada. The earthquakes were normally no more than magnitude 1. 0, but at least one earthquake was as strong as magnitude 3. 9. Since the appearance of the Nazko swarm, Natural Resources Canada has expressed interest in the adjacent 7,000‑year‑old Naz Ko Cone.