New research estimates probability of mega-earthquake in the Aleutians
Friday, May 13, 2016 - 08:31
in Earth & Climate
A team of researchers from the University of Hawai'i at Mānoa (UHM) published a study this week that estimated the probability of a Magnitude 9+ earthquake in the Aleutian Islands—an event with sufficient power to create a mega-tsunami especially threatening to Hawai'i. In the next 50 years, they report, there is a 9% chance of such an event. An earlier State of Hawai'i report (Table 6.12) has estimated the damage from such an event would be nearly $40 billion, with more than 300,000 people affected.