Saturday, February 25, 2012

Strong Second Earthquake

Taiwan Seismology Station
Helicorder Output
BIG BRAIN SURVIVES POWERFUL 6.1 EARTHQUAKE!
TODAY - Sunday February 26th, 2012 at 10:36 am, the Big Brain experienced a large earthquake. The rooms shook wildly, the chandelier flew precariously about, furniture threatened to topple, the Left and Right Brain sections took in the punishing vibrations and luckily no Brain or Laboratory damage resulted.

According to news reports, Taiwan’s Central Weather Bureau said the quake struck at 10:35 a.m. (0235 GMT) in a mountainous area just inland from the coastal city of Pingtung, with a magnitude of 6.1. TV reported some damage and said high-speed rail service had been temporarily suspended out of the southern city of Kaohsiung, north of Pingtung. Estimates of strength on the R scale will vary based on the distance from the Epicenter. In Taipei it hit near Taiwan's second city of Kaohsiung on Sunday, US seismologists said. The quake struck 57 kilometres (35 miles) east of the city at 10:34 a.m. (0234 GMT) at a depth of just four kilometres, the US Geological Survey said. The Hong Kong observatory measured the quake at magnitude 6.0. Earthquakes are frequent to Taiwan, but most are minor and cause little or no damage. However, a magnitude 7.6 earthquake in central Taiwan in 1999 killed more than 2,300 people.

This is the second earthquake experience by the Big Brain. The first occurred on Thursday, January 19, 2012 and was a force estimated at 4.6 near the epicenter.

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