The Haida Gwaii earthquake had a complex pattern of main shock rupture and aftershocks and a large tsunami. The proposed research would be conducted in accordance with U.S. and international regulatory requirements. The Queen Charlotte fault, often called the ‘San Andreas of the North,’ is a strike-slip plate boundary that separates the Pacific and North American tectonic plates … The first was the 1949 Haida Gwaii/Queen Charlotte earthquake with a magnitude of 8.1 That 1949 Haida Gwaii earthquake was a strike-slip event, where the plates move side-to-side, similar to the 1906 San Francisco earthquake and other quakes on the San Andreas Fault in California. That earthquake occurred farther north in southeast Alaska, where relative plate motion is nearly parallel to the Queen Charlotte fault. Kitimat unveils metal memorial tree for missing and murdered indigenous women. The best-known (and most destructive) are those on land at the margins of tectonic plates. Did the 1964 tsunami bring a dangerous tropical fungus to the BC Coast? It may also include some fragments of oceanic crust. Northwest Coast Energy News is only semi-retired, LNG Canada donates safety school bus for Kitimat high school sports teams, Kitimat welcomes new BC NDP government LNG policy, LNG Canada announces short list firms for procurement and construction contractors, EXCLUSIVE: Kitimat can regulate access to river camping, province indicates, Second mate of tug Nathan E. Stewart asleep on watch when it grounded off Bella Bella: NTSB, Analysis: New scientific findings likely confirm Haisla story of first arrival in the valley. One question to ask is if there are any records of major earthquake events in the past history of Haida Gwaii. The crust is about 12 kilometres thick at the terrace. On the BC mainland the crust is … The second quake, just 200 miles to the north, generated a magnitude 7.5 event offshore of Craig, Alaska, rupturing a 70-mile long stretch of the fault. In Queen Charlotte City perceptible shaking lasted for one and half to two minutes, with very strong shaking for about 30 seconds. To the south the Queen Charlotte Fault also interacts with the Juan de Fuca plate that stretches from Vancouver Island to northern California. The displacement of the ocean in a thrust can trigger a tsunami. During the rupture, one side of the fault is pushed upwards relative to the other, and it is this type of movement that is known as thrust. For additional information please contact Dr. Gary Greene, greene@cruzio.com, smartphone907.747.8878 The 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake in Japan, both accompanied by major tsunamis are recent examples of “great” (higher than magnitude 8.0) megathrust earthquakes. Before the 2012 earthquake, the Queen Charlotte Fault, a strike-slip fault similar to the San Andreas Fault in California, was believed to be the dominating tectonic structure in the area. We're involved in a wide variety of locally-relevant aquatic and terrestrial research. Related links The dating is based on a tsunami that hit Japan that had no associated local earthquake as well studies of tree rings from the remains of trees downed in the tsunami. The Sitka Sound Science Center is part of an international team of scientists probing the depths of the northeast Pacific offshore of Alaska and British Columbia, Canada, to better understand hazards associated with the Queen Charlotte Fault, which forms a 700 mile boundary between the Pacific and North American tectonic plates. It occurred where relatively young oceanic lithosphere under thrusts North America and in some ways is an analog for the much larger megathrust earthquakes known to occur on the Cascadia subduction zone to the south, where the young Juan de Fuca plate and other small plates subduct beneath North America. In Hawaii, a 0.8 metre wave was measured on a tide gauge. This fault runs from northern Vancouver Island, west of the Queen Charlotte Islands, up to the Gulf of Alaska. The Sitka Sound Science Center is part of an international team of scientists probing the depths of the northeast Pacific offshore of Alaska and British Columbia, Canada, to better understand hazards associated with the Queen Charlotte Fault, which forms a 700 mile boundary between the Pacific and North American tectonic plates. The situation off Haida Gwaii is complex because while the Pacific plate is converging with the North American plate at a rate of 15 to 20 millimetres a year, at the same time the two plates are slipping by each other toward the north northwest at angle of about 20 degrees at a rate of about 50 millimetres a year. On Haida Gwaii, the earth’s crust is 18 kilometres thick at the eastern edge. In fact, the Queen Charlotte Fault ruptured twice in recent years, raising concern over its potential to damage coastal and seabed infrastructure through southeastern Alaska and western British Columbia. The earthquake was felt as far away as Yukon Territory, Alberta, and Montana. The Haida Gwaii rupture also shook southeastern Alaska. The fault has been difficult to study because it is located almost entirely offshore in water depths of greater than 500 feet. The Queen Charlotte Terrace is a 25 kilometre wide zone of built up marine sediment immediately west of the active Queen Charlotte fault. The 1949 Queen Charlotte Islands earthquake was caused by a rupture on the Queen Charlotte Fault, which forms part of the boundary between the Pacific and North American plates. :10 am -3:30 pm, Deformation of the Pacific/North America Plate Boundary at Queen Charlotte Fault: The Possible Role of Rheology, Investigating the Offshore Queen Charlotte-Fairweather Fault System in Southeastern Alaska, and its Potential to Produce Earthquakes, Tsunamis, and Submarine Landslides, Slope failure and mass transport processes along the Queen Charlotte Fault, southeastern Alaska, Slope failure and mass transport processes along the Queen Charlotte Fault Zone, western British Columbia, A Closer Look at an Undersea Source of Alaskan Earthquakes. This framework is critically needed for improving earthquake and tsunami hazard assessments across the Pacific Northwest, which affects mitigation and response planning.