Politics / Canada
Policy and political decisions with potential market and society impact. Topic: Canada. Updated briefs and structured summaries from curated sources.
How the 'big one' has literally shifted
Full timeline
0.0–300.0
Scientists have discovered a massive tear underground, indicating a more complex tectonic situation than previously understood. This discovery suggests that the northern end of the Cascadia Subduction Zone is beginning to shut down, with a potential for a mega thrust earthquake within the next 100 years.
- Scientists have discovered a massive tear underground, indicating that the tectonic situation is more complex than previously understood. This discovery suggests that the northern end of the Cascadia Subduction Zone is beginning to shut down
- The 1,000 km stretch from Northern California to Vancouver Island is essentially locked and loaded for a mega thrust earthquake within the next 100 years. The ocean plate being pushed under is not a single solid piece; it is broken into sections that move at different rates
- An ocean ridge is producing new ocean crust adjacent to the continent. This new plate is still hot and buoyant, making it less dense and unable to sink effectively
- The section of the plate near North America is resisting subduction, leading to a break apart. This phenomenon is referred to as a tear in the slab, similar to a tear in a piece of paper
- Scientists have imaged this tear, which is occurring at the fault line. Eventually, this section may stop subducting entirely and instead slide alongside the continent
- The transformation of the boundary resembles scissors cutting through the plate. This allows one segment to cease subduction, indicating that the Cascadia Subduction Zone is shrinking over longer time scales
- Despite these changes, the potential for a significant earthquake remains. Future earthquakes in this region will require a better understanding of how ruptures propagate and interact with existing boundaries