A team of international scientists is preparing to set up two sub-seafloor observatories at New Zealand's largest geological threat: the Hikurangi Subduction Zone. "Slow-slip events or slow-slip earthquakes are similar to earthquakes, because they involve more rapid than normal movement along a fault," explained Dr Laura Wallace, of GNS Science. 2016's Kaikoura earthquake triggered a large slow-slip event off the east coast covering an area of more than 15,000 sq km. Investigating why and where slow-slip events happen was a key missing link in understanding how faults work. Wallace believed that "slow-slip events also have great potential to improve our ability to forecast earthquakes".

Source: Otago Daily Times March 07, 2018 21:33 UTC