The Hikurangi plate boundary is the place where the Pacific tectonic plate is subducting, or diving beneath, the Australian tectonic plate. INGOMAR200/SUPPLIED An earthquake from the Hikurangi subduction zone could generate a devastating tsunami for the east coast of New Zealand. MARGARET LOW, GNS SCIENCE Dr Emily Warren-Smith is the lead author and seismologist working on the Hikurangi subduction zone research. STEVEN PLESCIA, UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO Japanese scientists prepare an instrument to be placed on the seafloor and record activity inside the Hikurangi subduction zone. "We argue that increased monitoring of earthquakes around the Hikurangi subduction zone, including a permanent network of offshore instruments, will accelerate the development of reliable forecasts of potentially damaging subduction earthquakes.

Source: Stuff May 21, 2019 00:11 UTC