GIANT FISSURE SPLITS THE EARTH OPEN IN RURAL NORTHWEST MEXICO • The crack is nearly three quarters of a mile, about 26 deep and 16 feet wide • Geologists are still investigating the origin of the opening Scientists in Mexico are puzzling over a giant fissure that has split the ground in the northern part of the country. The crack, which runs for nearly two-thirds of a mile, measures close to 30 feet deep and is just more than 15 feet across at its widest spot. Locals found the geographical oddity Tuesday night when it split a rural road in half 50 miles west of the city of Hermosillo in the Mexican state of Sonora, according to Excelsior, a Spanish-language news source. A video of the split, recorded from a drone, follows the arc of the chasm, which in some spots looks wide enough to swallow a truck. While some believe seismic activity is to blame -- the USGS reports Mexico is one of the worlds most seismically active areas, and a magnitude 5.0-quake occurred earlier this month off the coast near Hermosillo -- others point to an underground stream that eroded the ground above it. Expreso, a Mexican newspaper, cites social media reports of heavy rainfall in the area prior to the rift opening. The newspaper also reports that the crack opened last Friday, instead of Tuesday, as Excelsior reports. In any case, says Martín Valencia Moreno, the head of the National Autonomous University of Mexicos Regional Station of the Geological Institute, theres no cause for alarm. Its definitely not a cause for alarm for the population, Moreno told Excelsior in a statement translated by The Huffington Post, its more something sensationalist and people like to encourage that sort of thing. He added that he doesnt believe an earthquake is to blame, because when a fault is generated the levels generally move and here we see people walking on both sides of the trench, the two levels are still in place, one side isnt raised and the other hasnt sunk either. huffingtonpost/2014/08/22/giant-crack-in-mexico-video_n_5699362.html?ncid=fcbklnkushpmg00000043 dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2732117/Giant-fissure-splits-earth-open-rural-northwest-Mexico.html
Posted on: Sat, 23 Aug 2014 12:14:49 +0000
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