DigitalGlobe
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The WorldView-2 satellite photo at left shows an oil refinery near Concepcion, Chile,
on Feb. 27 after the area was hit by an 8.8 earthquake. A pre-quake image of the same area, seen at right, was taken by the QuickBird satellite on Feb. 21. |
How did the magnitude-8.8 earthquake in Chile compare with January’s 7.0 earthquake in Haiti? Was Chile’s quake 60 times stronger? 600 times stronger? And exactly how much time will we be losing every day because the 8.8 quake affected Earth’s rotation?
If it’s just a question of running the numbers, scientists can provide extremely precise answers. But the realities of earth science aren’t always easy to pin down on a yardstick or a stopwatch.
…(read more)