THE WORLD’S LARGEST EARTHQUAKE IN 2004

Abstract

Every year, Earth is shaken by several hundred thousand earthquakes with magnitudes over 2.0 (Dolgoff, 1998), mostly originating at the geotectonic plate boundaries. Two well-defined seismic belts, the circum-Pacific and the Mediterranean-Himalayan belts, are subject to the most frequent earthquake shocks. The latter also includes the region of Slovenia. Most earthquakes are weak and do not cause any material damage and nor claim human lives. In addition to these, there are several earthquakes which result in extreme destruction and even death. There were 92 earthquakes in 2004 that reached a magnitude of 6.5 or more, caused minor or major material damage, or even claimed human lives. Forty-nine of them are mentioned. In 2004, there were many strong earthquakes in Turkey and near Honshu Island, Japan. The most devastating earthquake in 2004 happened on 26 December, near the west coast of northern Sumatra, Indonesia. It was also ranked first in terms of released energy, with a moment magnitude of 9.0. It was the fourth largest earthquake in the world since 1900. The tsunami from this earthquake caused extreme destruction in South Asia and East Africa. The earthquake and tsunami claimed at least 283,100 human lives, but this is not the final number. Mor than 141,800 are still listed as missing or presumed dead. We will never know how many lives were taken. The deepest earthquake happened on 25 July in South Sumatra, Indonesia, with a hypocentre 582 km below the surface and a moment magnitude of 7.1. Another very deep earthquake (566 km below the surface) happened on 15 July near the Fiji Islands. In 2004, earthquakes claimed more than 284,000 human lives.