The United States Geological Survey recorded a Magnitude 4.3 Earthquake at a depth of 10 km in the Karlovy Vary Region of the Czech Republic, close to the border with Germany, slightly after 12.35 pm local time (slightly after 10.35 am GMT) on Saturday 31 May 2014. There are no reports of any damage or casualties associated with this event, though it was felt as far away as Prague and Leipzig.
The approximate location of the 31 May 2014 Karlovy Vary Earthquake. Google Maps.
The Czech is in north-central Europe, an area not noted for its Earthquakes, but not completely immune either. Like other areas where Earthquakes are uncommon, it is seldom possible to give a precise cause for Czech Earthquakes, with both probably being the result of more than one source of tectonic pressure. The strongest source of tectonic stress in southern the Czech Republic is the impact of Africa with Europe, far to the south. This is causing uplift and folding in the Alpine region of Central Europe, and exert pressure on the rocks further to the north. There are also areas of minor tectonic spreading beneath the Rhine Valley and North Sea, both of which cause stress over a wide area. Finally there is glacial rebound; until about 10 000 years ago much of northern and upland Europe was covered by a thick layer of glacial ice, pushing the rocks of the lithosphere down into the underlying mantle. This ice is now gone, and the rocks are slowly springing back into place, causing occasional Earthquakes in the process.
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The Zentralanstalt für Meteorologie und Geodynamik recorded a...
The Zentralanstalt für Meteorologie und Geodynamik recorded a...
On Friday 6 April 2012 slightly after 8.40 am local time (slightly after 6.40 am GMT) hit the Silesian town of Lubin in southwest Poland. The quake was measured as having a magnitude of 4.4 on the Richter Scale, and occurring at a depth of 4.9 km by the United States Geological Survey. There are no reports of any casualties or serious damage at this time.
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