16 March 2011

Royal Society Hosts Press Conference on Canterbury Earthquakes

Today the Royal Society of New Zealand, assisted by the Office of the Prime Minister’s Science Advisory Committee, gathered a group of scientists from GNS Science’s National Hazards Research Platform to discuss recent earthquakes and aftershocks in the Canterbury region.

The scientists spoke on many aspects of the February earthquake, elucidating that it was an aftershock from September, and that such activity is not unusual. Furthermore, they explained that the second earthquake caused significantly more damage because of its extremely close proximity to the Christchurch CBD.

The panel dispelled many ubiquitous rumours, including the idea that the magnitude, timing, and location of earthquakes can be predicted. Also, they clarified that other recent natural disasters—like the floods in Queensland and Japan’s devastating earthquake and tsunami—are not related to in any way to events in New Zealand.

• Scoop Audio (11 Minutes): Audio on demand of a press conference held this morning by the Royal Society to consider the scientific responses to the Canterbury Earthquake.

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