Alaska's Quake Has A Lot To Tell Us

Alaska's Quake Has A Lot To Tell Us

Tools

Story Published: Nov 25, 2002 at 4:17 AM PDT

Story Updated: Aug 31, 2006 at 12:53 AM PDT

By KOMO Staff

Watch the story
ELLENSBURG - Last month's massive earthquake in Alaska is helping scientists prepare for the next big quake in the Puget Sound.

Central Washington University Professor Charles Rubin just returned from Alaska where he and a dozen other scientists studied the effects of the 7.9 quake.

The photographs they took amazed them. The sheer scope of the damage was more than they could have imagined.

"The extent of surface rupture was over 300 kilometers," says Rubin. "To me that was just a lot of fault exposed on the surface. The other was, I never had seen an earthquake rupture through glaciers and snow fields."

Because it was so remote, this quake caused little damage in any populated areas.

Rubin hopes the information they gather can be used by engineers to design buildings, highways and pipelines that can better withstand quakes.

For More Information:

Denali Earthquake Fault

Weather & Traffic

Icon
Current Temp 58.0 °F
A Few Clouds
More Weather

Weather & Traffic

More Weather

On Demand

Resources and info you need to prepare for the switch to DTV.

Stay Connected

YouNews

This content requires the latest Adobe Flash Player and a browser with JavaScript enabled. Click here for a free download of the latest Adobe Flash Player.

Marketplace