Earthquakes can cause rivers to unexpectedly change course. New research reveals we may be able to predict the resulting flooding – and plan better for future disasters.
Academic rigor, journalistic flair
Articles on Earthquakes
Displaying 1 - 20 of 256 articles
Some people were woken up near midnight by a powerful ground-shake. But did you know earthquakes occur in the greater Melbourne region about once a month – even though we can’t always feel them?
High-risk, high-uncertainty events like earthquakes tend to fall out of view when we are occupied with more predictable seasonal events like wildfires, which have very visible effects on our lives.
Suzume stands its ground in the large collection of films and literature coming to terms with the memory of Japan’s 2011 triple disaster.
February earthquakes wreaked havoc across Turkey and Syria, killing tens of thousands of people. An engineer originally from Turkey describes what kept some buildings functional while others collapsed.
When government responses to a natural disaster do not address the specific needs and vulnerabilities of women and girls, women tend to lose trust in the institutions.
Images of the 2011 tsunami did not look as I had expected, and pointed to the sublime, when experience exceeds our frameworks of understanding. My exhibit ‘Salients’ treats this theme.
A scholar who visited Syria after the earthquake observes that as the war has dragged on, a humanitarian organization she’s researched for 10 years has branched out.
Recognizing the challenges posed by climate-induced displacement is important. But officials must avoid rhetoric about displaced people that can fuel xenophobia.
The earthquake that struck Turkey and neighboring Syria on Feb. 6, 2023, was a natural disaster, but its consequences have been shaped by the human tragedy of the Syrian civil war.
Food, shelter and medical supplies are important but not the only things that help people get back on their feet.
Disaster-hit Turkey is due to stage a presidential vote in June. Erdoğan’s handling of the earthquake response – and his role in the country’s perceived lack of preparedness – may be his undoing.
We might expect that accounts of earthquakes from the medieval period have been lost to history, but some have survived.
The idea that scientists could warn a region that a big quake was coming at a certain time – with enough advance notice for large-scale preparation and evacuation – remains a dream, not a reality.
The Turkish government was well aware of earthquake-resilient construction techniques.
Politics stood in the way of a humanitarian response that could have saved hundreds, if not thousands, of lives.
The focus of efforts to save the lives of earthquake victims needs to shift to the emerging threats from disease and lack of clean water and shelter.
Turkey has repeatedly attempted to improve its earthquake preparedness. So what went wrong?
The devastating outcomes of earthquakes is worsened when buildings cannot withstand the impact. Also, increased urban density and new construction materials are complicating search-and-rescue efforts.
We may never know exactly when the next big quake will hit – but we can have a pretty good idea of the odds.
Top contributors
-
Associate Professor of Earthquake Science, The University of Melbourne
-
Professor in Earth Sciences, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, and Emeritus Professor of Mineral Physics, University of Cambridge
-
Adjunct Research Fellow, Curtin University
-
Honorary Professor of Tsunami Research, PANGEA Research Centre, UNSW Australia, UNSW Sydney
-
Professor of Geophysics, Durham University
-
Honorary Fellow in Structural Geology and Tectonics, The University of Melbourne
-
Senior Lecturer, Humanitarian Emergency and Disaster Management, Charles Darwin University
-
Professor, Australian National University
-
Redmond Barry Distinguished Professor Emeritus, The University of Melbourne
-
Honorary Professor of Hazards and Disaster Risk Sciences, University of Sydney
-
Reader in Physical Geography and Natural Hazards, Coventry University
-
Professor of Geoenergy, Carbon Capture and Storage, Durham University
-
Pro-Vice Chancellor: Global, Newcastle University
-
PhD Candidate in the Department of Earth Sciences, Durham University
-
Earthquake Geologist, Monash University
