The project has now also completed its draft South Island Alpine Fault Earthquake Response (SAFER) framework, which puts into place procedures for when the enormous fault ruptures. "When the Alpine Fault next ruptures, it will produce seismic waves that propagate out in all directions," Townend said. The Southern Alps have been uplifted on the fault over the last 12 million years in a series of earthquakes. From there, the Alpine Fault runs along the western edge of the Southern Alps, before splitting into a set of smaller dextral strike-slip faults north of Arthur’s Pass, known as the Marlborough Fault System. That said, from what we do know, there will be a large earthquake on the Alpine fault in the not-too-distant geological future, and it would be no surprise if it happened tomorrow. “There are things we can do about that . The Alpine Fault is believed to align with the Macquarie Fault Zone in the Puysegur Trench off the southwestern corner of the South Island. Scientists say the intensity of the shaking in the most affected areas - particularly West Coast spots - could be unlike anything we've felt before. The Alpine Fault is a geological fault, specifically a right-lateral strike-slip fault, that runs almost the entire length of New Zealand's South Island. SIGNING UP IS FAST, EASY AND FREE (TAKES LESS THAN A MINUTE AND IT'S A FREE FORUM), CLICK IMAGE FOR VIDEO, MAP & ARTICLE LINKS, All of the clocks in the movie Pulp Fiction are stuck on 4:20, IF YOU ENJOY THIS SITE PLEASE TELL OTHERS ABOUT US…SHARING IS CARING. At 3 AM on May 29, 2013, the South Island’s technological uncon­scious roars […] FOLLOW US ON FACEBOOK, TWITTER , OR SUBSCRIBE TO OUR BLOG SO YOU NEVER MISS NEWLY POSTED ARTICLES OR IMPORTANT ALERTS! "When the Alpine Fault next ruptures, it will produce seismic waves that propagate out in all directions," Townend said. Less people live close to the Alpine Fault but the shaking could cause widespread The geology of New Zealand makes that an incredibly complex question to answer - but a new study evaluating millions of different earthquake scenarios will give us a much better idea. WE ENCOURAGE YOU TO REGISTER, LET'S BUILD A GREAT COMMUNITY TOGETHER This study builds upon previous investigations in order to develop a better chronology of large earthquakes generated by ruptures on the Alpine Fault. The Alpine Fault, which runs about 600km up the western side of the South Island between Milford Sound and Marlborough, poses one of the biggest natural threats to New Zealand - especially the West Coast, Canterbury and Otago. GNS Science sent four of its geologists to Franz Josef to talk about what will happen when the Alpine Fault ruptures. Photo / Getty Images. It could cause horizontal movement of up to eight metres. "But we haven't yet witnessed a rupture of this fault ourselves, so our understanding of what ground motions it will produce is based on hypotheses about how much of the fault ruptures, how fast, and to what depth... and the elastic properties of the Earth," he said. AND BE SURE TO JOIN OUR FORUM TOO! The rupture will produce one of the biggest earthquakes since European settlement of New Zealand, and it will have a major impact on the lives of many people. GNS science said there was a 30 per cent chance of a large earthquake on the Alpine Fault in the next 50 years. It forms a transform boundary between the Pacific Plate and the Indo-Australian Plate. Bradley said emergency resources would be stretched if a major earthquake struck, and people could expect to “feel far more alone”. SUPPORT BENDEDREALITY- MAKE A DONATION TODAY, WE ENCOURAGE YOU TO REGISTER, LET'S BUILD A GREAT COMMUNITY TOGETHER. The Alpine Fault has a high probability (estimated at 30%) of rupturing in the next 50 years. "When the Alpine Fault next ruptures, it will produce seismic waves that propagate out in all directions," Townend said. “Now that we have that understanding, we can prepare for it better, and hopefully we can lessen the impact it has on us as a society.”. Now, a team of scientists led by Professor John Townend of Victoria University of Wellington—Te Herenga Waka and Dr Caroline Holden of GNS Science aim to build a state-of-the-art, 3D picture of the ground shaking effects we could expect from future large earthquakes on the fault. The Los Angeles aqueduct could be fortified so that it won’t break when the San Andreas ruptures. When the Alpine Fault next ruptures it is likely to produce an earthquake with a magnitude of around 8. "This enables us to compute realistic ground-shaking in population centres and at other vulnerable locations in response to many more earthquake rupture scenarios than can be practicably studied using conventional approaches," Townend said. When most people think of the “Big One,” they often think about an earthquake caused by the San Andreas Fault. The Alpine Fault, which runs about ... 3D picture of the ground shaking effects we could expect from future large earthquakes on the fault. – Toilet paper and large rubbish bags for your emergency toilet. The Alpine Fault is a geological fault that runs almost the entire length of New Zealand's South Island (c. 480 km) and forms the boundary between the Pacific Plate and the Indo-Australian Plate. "When the Alpine Fault next ruptures, it will produce seismic waves that propagate out in all directions," Townend said. a smaller group of scientists drilled two boreholes to about 150m into the fault, also near Whataroa, in early 2011. 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