The New Madrid Earthquake, the largest earthquake ever recorded in the contiguous United States, occurred on February 7, 1812. (The largest recorded earthquake in the entire United States was the Alaskan Good Friday Earthquake on March 27, 1964.) It got its name from its primary location in the New Madrid Seismic Zone, near New Madrid, Louisiana Territory (now Missouri). This earthquake was preceded by three other major quakes: two on December 16, 1811, and one on January 23, 1812. These earthquakes destroyed approximately half the town of New Madrid. There were also numerous aftershocks in the area for the rest of that winter. There are estimates that the earthquakes were felt strongly over 50,000 square miles (130,000 km²), and moderately across nearly one million square miles. The historic San Francisco earthquake of 1906, by comparison, was felt moderately over 6,000 square miles (16,000 km²). This article is about the natural seismic phenomenon. ... The continental United States is a term referring to the United States situated on the North American continent. ... is the 38th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... For the overture by Tchaikovsky, see 1812 Overture; For the wars, see War of 1812 (USA - United Kingdom) or Patriotic War of 1812 (France - Russia) For the Siberia Airlines plane crashed over the Black Sea on October 4, 2001, see Siberia Airlines Flight 1812 1812 was a leap year starting... For other uses, see Alaska (disambiguation). ... Earthquake Damage, Anchorage The Good Friday Earthquake (also called the Great Alaska Earthquake) of Friday, March 27, 1964 (Good Friday, a Christian holy day associated with a historical earthquake[1]), 5:36 P.M. AST (03:36 3/27 UTC) had a magnitude of 9. ... is the 86th day of the year (87th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Also Nintendo emulator: 1964 (emulator). ... Seismic map New Madrid Seismic Zone. ... New Madrid is a city located in New Madrid County, Missouri, 42 miles (68 km) south by west of Cairo, Illinois, on the Mississippi River. ... The United States in 1810, following the Louisiana Purchase. ... Official language(s) English Capital Jefferson City Largest city Kansas City Largest metro area St Louis[1] Area  Ranked 21st  - Total 69,709 sq mi (180,693 km²)  - Width 240 miles (385 km)  - Length 300 miles (480 km)  - % water 1. ... is the 350th day of the year (351st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... For the US Federal Agent designation, see Special agent. ... is the 23rd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... For the overture by Tchaikovsky, see 1812 Overture; For the wars, see War of 1812 (USA - United Kingdom) or Patriotic War of 1812 (France - Russia) For the Siberia Airlines plane crashed over the Black Sea on October 4, 2001, see Siberia Airlines Flight 1812 1812 was a leap year starting... The San Francisco earthquake of 1906 was a major earthquake at San Francisco, California on the early morning of Wednesday, April 18, 1906. ...

Effects

Based on the effects of these earthquakes, it can be estimated that they had a magnitude of 8.0 on the Richter scale. As a result of the quakes, large areas sank into the earth, new lakes were formed (notably Reelfoot Lake, Tennessee), and the Mississippi River changed its course, creating Kentucky Bend. Nearby sections of the Mississippi River actually ran backwards for a short time. Sandblows were common throughout the area, and their effects can still be seen from the air in cultivated fields. Church bells were reported to ring in Boston, Massachusetts and sidewalks were reported to have been cracked and broken in Washington, D.C. .^[1] The Richter magnitude test scale (or more correctly local magnitude ML scale) assigns a single number to quantify the size of an earthquake. ... Reelfoot Lake is a shallow natural lake located in the extreme northwest portion of Tennessee, United States of America, just south of the Kentucky line. ... This article is about the U.S. state of Tennessee. ... For the river in Canada, see Mississippi River (Ontario). ... The Kentucky Bend, variously called the New Madrid Bend, Madrid Bend, Bessie Bend or Bubbleland is an exclave of Fulton County, Kentucky, in the United States. ... A sand volcano or sand blow is a cone of sand formed by the ejection of sand onto a surface from a central point. ... Boston redirects here. ... For other uses, see Washington, D.C. (disambiguation). ...

A request, dated January 13, 1814, by William Clark, the governor of Missouri Territory (the territory was renamed soon after the quake to eliminate confusion with the new state of Louisiana), asked for federal relief for the "inhabitants of New Madrid County". This was possibly the first example of a request for disaster relief from the US Federal government, which would later become the job of the Federal Emergency Management Agency. January 13 is the 13th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1814 (MDCCCXIV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar). ... For other persons named William Clark, see William Clark (disambiguation). ... Missouri Territory was a historic, organized territory in the United States. ... This article is about the U.S. State. ... FEMA redirects here. ...

This area was much less developed at the time and a comparable event today would cause significant damage.

Reelfoot Rift: epicenter of the earthquake

Reelfoot Rift: a still active fault

4000 earthquake reports since 1974

The Reelfoot Rift goes back about 750 million years, to when the entire landmass of the earth constituted a single supercontinent, designated now as Rodinia. At the time a constructive fault zone began to form, now called the Reelfoot Rift, but it failed, and the zone became inactive. About 550 million years later, at the time of the supercontinent called Pangaea, the fault zone again became active but no longer functioned as a constructive plate and remains in the same condition today. The earthquakes are therefore traced to seismic activity 5 to 25 kilometers (3-15 mi) below the crust of the earth. Image File history File links Reelfoot_rift. ... Image File history File links Reelfoot_rift. ... Image File history File links Landkarte_New_Madrid_Erdbeben. ... Image File history File links Landkarte_New_Madrid_Erdbeben. ... Seismic map New Madrid Seismic Zone - USGS The New Madrid Seismic Zone, also known as the Reelfoot Rift or the New Madrid Fault Line, is a major seismic zone, located in the mideastern United States. ... In geology, a supercontinent is a land mass comprising more than one continental core, or craton. ... Depiction of Rodinia at time of initial breakup. ... Geologic faults, fault lines or simply faults are planar rock fractures, which show evidence of relative movement. ... For other uses, see Pangaea (disambiguation). ... Earth cutaway from core to exosphere. ...

New Madrid Seismic Zone

Main article: New Madrid Seismic Zone

The epicenters of over 4,000 earthquakes can be identified from seismic measurements taken since 1974. It can be seen that the earthquakes originate from the seismic activity of the Reelfoot Rift. The zone which is strongly colored in red on the map is called the New Madrid Seismic Zone. Seismic map New Madrid Seismic Zone. ...

The zone remains active today. In recent decades minor earthquakes have continued. Scientists estimate that the probability is over 90% that there will be an earthquake with a magnitude of 6 to 7 on the Richter scale in the next 50 years.^[1] The Richter magnitude test scale (or more correctly local magnitude ML scale) assigns a single number to quantify the size of an earthquake. ...

The situation is more precarious than it was 200 years ago. The area is now more densely populated, and many buildings have no earthquake resistant construction. A few states have joined forces and founded a special institute for their earthquake zone, to prepare as well as possible for a major earthquake. The Mississippi River will probably present one of the incalculable problems. A few emergency funds for earthquake victims have been founded. Measures are also being ordered to mitigate any natural disaster resulting from an earthquake; thus in the construction of dams, bridges, and highways, earthquake safety is particularly being taken into account. Understanding of this earthquake zone is growing slowly in comparison to awareness of the San Andreas fault. Earthquake construction is a branch of architectural engineering concerned with making sure structures can withstand as severe an earthquake shock as possible given the materials available. ... Mount Pinatubo eruption, 1991 A natural disaster is the consequence of a natural hazard (e. ... View of the San Andreas Fault on the Carrizo Plain in central California, 35°07N, 119°39W The San Andreas Fault is a geological fault that runs a length of roughly 800 miles (1300 kilometres) through western and southern California in the United States. ...

Almost 200 years after the earthquakes in 1811 and 1812, the course of the Mississippi River as it was before the events is still visible in the landscape of the affected areas today. Along and parallel to the Tennessee/Arkansas state line, the shrunk riverbed is still present. This article is about the U.S. state of Tennessee. ... Official language(s) English Capital Little Rock Largest city Little Rock Largest metro area Little Rock Metropolitan Area Area  Ranked 29th  - Total 53,179 sq mi (137,002 km²)  - Width 239 miles (385 km)  - Length 261 miles (420 km)  - % water 2. ...

Gallery

Contemporary drawing Image File history File links New_Madrid_Erdbeben. ...	Reelfoot Rift and NMSZ Image File history File links NMSZ_Erdbeben. ...	View to the southwest along the former riverbed of the Mississippi River, south of the Tennessee/Arkansas state line near Reverie, Tennessee and Wilson, Arkansas (2007) Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... View to the Southwest along the former riverbed of the Mississippi River, just South of the Tennessee/Arkansas state line near Reverie, TN (2007) Reverie, Tennessee is a town in Tipton County, Tennessee, United States. ... Wilson is a town in Mississippi County, Arkansas, United States. ...	View to the northeast Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ...
Damage-range comparison between a moderate New Madrid zone earthquake (1895, magnitude 6.8), and a similar Los Angeles event (1994, magnitude 6.7). Image File history File links NMSZ_Vergleich. ...

See also

• List of earthquakes
• Postglacial rebound

The following is a list of major earthquakes. ... Changes in the elevation of Lake Superior due to glaciation and post-glacial rebound Post-glacial rebound (sometimes called continental rebound, isostatic rebound or isostatic adjustment) is the rise of land masses that were depressed by the huge weight of ice sheets during the last ice age, through a process...

References

• United States Geological Survey (2003-10-15). "USGS Earthquake Hazards Program: 1811 - 1812 Earthquakes in the New Madrid Seismic Zone". Retrieved 2005-05-03.

• When the Mississippi Ran Backwards : Empire, Intrigue, Murder, and the New Madrid Earthquakes Free Press ISBN: 0743242785

1. ^ ^{a b} U.S. Geological Survey Fact Sheet-168-95 1995 The Mississippi Valley-"Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On"

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External links

• USGS: NMSZ since 1811; also theories
• Synopsis, along with eyewitness accounts
• New Madrid seismic zone

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