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When
you think of earthquakes, Colorado
is most likely not the first
place that comes to mind. But
earthquakes do in fact occur
in Colorado, as the residents
of the towns of Craig and Trinidad
can attest. Both of these areas
recently experienced earthquakes
that were above magnitude
4.0 on the Richter scalelarge
enough to feel, but fortunately
not so large as to cause significant
damage or injuries.
Although
most earthquakes in Colorado
are relatively minor, the potential
for a rare large earthquake
does exist. On November 7, 1882,
an earthquake with an estimated
magnitude of 6.26.5 occurred
in the mountains west of Fort
Collins. The quake caused minor
damage as far away as Denver,
and it was felt throughout a
wide area, including Colorado,
Wyoming, Utah, Idaho, Kansas,
and Nebraska.
A
large earthquake occurs when
there is sudden movement along
a faulta break in the
earths crust. Colorado
has about 90 potentially active
faults.
Shaking
Up Denver
In April 1962, the Denver
area suddenly began experiencing
a series of minor to moderate
earthquakes. By 1968, more than
1,500 earthquakes had rattled
Denver. The strongest of these
quakes struck Denver on August
9, 1967. Measured at 5.3 on
the Richter scale, it caused
more than a million dollars
worth of damage! Three months
later, on November 26, 1967,
a second strong quake hit with
a magnitude of 5.2.
What do you think caused this
sudden epidemic of earthquake
activity? Click
for the answer!
Colorado's
Biggest Quakes: Click
to see a list of Colorado's
largest recorded earthquakes
of the last 130 years.
Featured
Link: National
Earthquake Information Center
The National Earthquake Information
Center (NEIC) is located in
Golden, Colorado. The NEIC pinpoints
the location of destructive
earthquakes all over the world
and notifies governments, agencies,
scientists, and the general
public 24 hours a day.
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Photo
credits: © Corbis Images,
© NCAR, © NOAA, courtesy
NEWS4, Colorado's news channel.
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