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Rare M6.3 earthquake hits Chukotskiy Avtonomnyy Okrug, Russia’s Far East

rare-m6-3-earthquake-hits-chukotskiy-avtonomnyy-okrug-russia-far-east

Image credit: Google, TW/SAM

A strong and shallow earthquake registered by the USGS as M6.3 hit sparsely populated Chukotskiy Avtonomnyy Okrug, Russia at 08:38 UTC (20:38 LT) on January 9, 2020. The agency is reporting a depth of 10 km (6.2 miles). EMSC is reporting the same magnitude and depth. The quake was preceded by M4.0 at 08:17 UTC.

The epicenter was located 349.6 km (216.7 miles) NE of Tilichiki and 408.7 km (253.4 miles) SW of Anadyr, Russia.

There are about 100 people living within 100 km (62 miles).

2 000 people are estimated to have felt light shaking and 1 000 weak.

Image credit: Google, TW/SAM

The USGS issued a green alert for shaking-related fatalities and economic losses. There is a low likelihood of casualties and damage. 

Overall, the population in this region resides in structures that are resistant to earthquake shaking, though vulnerable structures exist. The predominant vulnerable building types are adobe block and unreinforced brick with mud construction.

Regional seismicity

I'm a dedicated researcher, journalist, and editor at The Watchers. With over 20 years of experience in the media industry, I specialize in hard science news, focusing on extreme weather, seismic and volcanic activity, space weather, and astronomy, including near-Earth objects and planetary defense strategies. You can reach me at teo /at/ watchers.news.

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