Earthquakes in Taiwan were registered by stations all over the world, including the Czech Republic

The earthquake that hit the east coast of Taiwan on the night of today SELČ was so strong that it was registered by seismic stations all over the world, including the Czech Republic. It triggered a series of seismic waves, which at stations in the Czech Republic showed the strength of the earthquake up to level eight. That is more than reported by large data centers. The earthquake was followed by other smaller aftershocks. It will take some time for the area to calm down, seismologist Jan Zedník from the Institute of Geophysics of the Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic told ČTK today.

According to official information, a strong earthquake off the coast of Taiwan has so far claimed several lives and injured hundreds. The tremors hit the entire island and destroyed many buildings. Taiwanese authorities are talking about the strongest earthquake in 25 years. The USGS said the quake had a magnitude of 7.4, while Japanese seismologists put it at 7.7 and Taiwan at 7.2.

“The earthquake caused a whole series of waves that gradually reached our stations. The surface waves came in about 50 minutes and were really strong, it indicated a magnitude eight. So more than large data centers indicate,” said Zedník to ČTK.

Seismic waves from such strong earthquakes can circle the globe several times, and instruments register them for many hours. According to Zedník, it takes hours for the country to calm down. In the case of Taiwan, experts also register dozens of aftershocks.

“The strong earthquake has already died down, but when the tension is released, weaker aftershocks still occur. We see that on the instruments,” the seismologist described. According to him, on this morning’s recording from the station in Kašperské Hory in Klatovsk, the instruments recorded another four to five weaker tremors.

According to Zedník, the station in Kašperské Hory is considered one of the most sensitive in the world. It has ideal conditions for recording earthquakes. It is located deep in the rock and is equipped with quality equipment. It can register, for example, significantly weaker tremors from the Pacific Ocean.

The last time an earthquake as strong as the current one hit Taiwan was in 1999, when it claimed thousands of lives and caused billions of dollars in damage. According to seismologist Václav Kuna from the Institute of Geophysics, such an earthquake is not unusual in this area. “Taiwan is located in a tectonically active area, and earthquakes of this magnitude statistically occur in the area once in a while,” ČTK wrote. Building structures are also adapted to this.

According to Kuna, a very strong earthquake with a magnitude of 8.2 was also in this area in 1920. It probably occurred at the interface of tectonic plates. Taiwan is located on the border of the Eurasian and Philippine tectonic plates.