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N0KFQ > TODAY 16.12.16 14:07l 37 Lines 1598 Bytes #999 (0) @ WW
BID : 16044_N0KFQ
Read: GUEST
Subj: Today in History - Dec 16
Path: IW8PGT<CX2SA<GB7CIP<N0KFQ
Sent: 161216/1301Z 16044@N0KFQ.#SWMO.MO.USA.NA BPQ6.0.13
1811
Earthquake rocks the American wilderness
In the Mississippi River Valley near New Madrid, Missouri, the
greatest series of earthquakes in U.S. history begins when a
quake of an estimated 8.6 magnitude on the Richter scale slams
the region. Although the earthquake greatly altered the
topography of the region, the area was only sparsely inhabited at
the time, and there were no known human fatalities.
The earthquake raised and lowered parts of the Mississippi Valley
by as much as 15 feet and changed the course of the Mississippi
River. At one point, the Mississippi momentarily reversed its
direction, giving rise to Reelfoot Lake in northwest Tennessee. A
30,000-square-mile area was affected, and tremors were felt as
far away as the eastern coast of the United States, where the
shock was reported to have rung church bells. Additional
earthquakes and aftershocks continued throughout the winter and
into the spring, and of the approximately 2,000 seismic
vibrations felt during the period, five were estimated to be at
an 8.0 or greater magnitude.
The New Madrid Fault system extends 120 miles southward from the
area of Charleston, Missouri, to Marked Tree, Arkansas, and
crosses through five states-Missouri, Illinois, Kentucky,
Tennessee, and Arkansas. An earthquake of about 6.0 magnitude or
greater occurs about every 80 years, and the catastrophic
upheavals of the type reported in the winter of 1811 to 1812
occur about every 500 or 600 years.
73 - K.O., n0kfq
N0KFQ @ N0KFQ.#SWMO.MO.USA.NA
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