Earthquake
Photo: ANI
Earthquake tremors were felt in the city of Khoy in northwestern Iran’s West Azerbaijan province on Saturday night. The intensity of the earthquake was measured at 5.9 on the Richter scale. Apart from this, the sound of a loud explosion has also been heard in the military plant of Isfahan city of Iran. State media has given this information.
According to TRT World, two people were killed and some 122 were injured in the quake, which shook several nearby towns. The USGS said the earthquake occurred at 23:44:44 (UTC+05:30) and struck 14 km SSW of Khovi, Iran, at a depth of 10 km.
According to the Iranian news agency IRNA, the tremors were strong and were felt in several areas of Iran’s West Azerbaijan province. The quake was also felt in several cities, including Tabriz, the provincial capital of neighboring East Azerbaijan. Khoy is a city in Khoy County and the capital of West Azerbaijan Province of Iran.
How do earthquakes happen?
The main reason for the occurrence of earthquakes is the collision of plates inside the earth. There are seven plates inside the earth which keep on rotating continuously. When these plates collide at some point, a fault line zone is formed there and the corners of the surface are folded. Due to the cornering of the surface, pressure builds up there and the plates start breaking. Due to the breakdown of these plates, the energy inside finds a way to come out, due to which the earth shakes and we consider it as an earthquake.
earthquake intensity
Earthquakes with a magnitude of less than 2.0 on the Richter scale are classified as micro and cannot be felt. 8,000 earthquakes of micro category on the Richter scale are recorded daily worldwide. Similarly, earthquakes with a magnitude of 2.0 to 2.9 are kept in the minor category. 1,000 such earthquakes occur daily, we do not even normally feel it. Very light earthquakes of magnitude 3.0 to 3.9 are recorded 49,000 times in a year. They are felt but hardly cause any harm.
Light category earthquakes are 4.0 to 4.9 magnitude which are recorded on the Richter scale about 6,200 times in a year all over the world. These tremors are felt and household items are seen moving. However, they cause negligible damage.
