Turkey earthquake map: Where in Syria and Turkey did the quake hit? trends now

Turkey earthquake map: Where in Syria and Turkey did the quake hit? trends now
Turkey earthquake map: Where in Syria and Turkey did the quake hit? trends now

Turkey earthquake map: Where in Syria and Turkey did the quake hit? trends now

Last night, a 7.8-magnitude earthquake shook Turkey and Syria for about a minute and resulted in the deaths of more than 1,300 people.

The epicentre was just north of the city of Gaziantep at a depth of around 11 miles (18 km), according to the US Geological Survey (USGS), and the quake struck at 04:17 am local time (01:17 GMT).

Tremors were felt as far away as Egypt, Lebanon and the island of Cyprus, while a tsunami warning was briefly issued by authorities in Italy along the country's coast.

Hours later, a second 7.5-magnitude earthquake hit two-and-a-half miles south-southeast of the town of Ekinozu.

But what caused these disasters, and where exactly did they strike? MailOnline answers all the key questions.

The epicentre was just north of the city of Gaziantep at a depth of around 11 miles (18 km), according to the US Geological Survey (USGS), and the quake struck at 04:17 am local time (01:17 GMT)

The epicentre was just north of the city of Gaziantep at a depth of around 11 miles (18 km), according to the US Geological Survey (USGS), and the quake struck at 04:17 am local time (01:17 GMT)

Tremors were felt as far away as Denmark, Greenland, Egypt, Lebanon and the island of Cyprus, while a tsunami warning was briefly issued in Italy along the country's coast.

Tremors were felt as far away as Denmark, Greenland, Egypt, Lebanon and the island of Cyprus, while a tsunami warning was briefly issued in Italy along the country's coast.

What happened and where?

In the early hours of Monday morning, a 7.8-magnitude earthquake hit central Turkey, about 60 miles from the Syrian border and at a depth of about 11 miles (18 km).

The nearby city of Gaziantep has a population of about two million people and the region is home to large numbers of Syrian refugees.

About ten minutes after the initial quake, a strong 6.6-magnitude aftershock rumbled, and another 40 smaller quakes were felt over the following two hours.

However, that wasn't the end of the devastation, as a second 7.7-magnitude earthquake hit the country at 1:24 pm (10:24 GMT).

This struck 60 miles (97 km) north of first epicentre, about 42 miles (67 km) north-east of Kahramanmaraş, before about 100 smaller aftershocks.

It occurred at a depth of 6 miles (10 km), according to USGS, and the epicentre was in the Elbistan region of Kahramanmaras province.

Pictured: The Turkish city of Hatay is seen after Monday morning's quake levelled buildings across the region, trapping scores of people in the rubble

Turkey has been hit by a second huge earthquake, hours after an earlier catastrophic quake devastated the region, killing more than 1,600 people and injuring thousands more, while toppling thousands of buildings. Pictured: The Turkish city of Hatay is seen after Monday morning's quake levelled buildings across the region

Tremor were felt as far away as Greenland, the Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland said.

'The large earthquakes in Turkey were clearly registered on the seismographs in Denmark and Greenland,' seismologist Tine Larsen told AFP.

On average, fewer than 20 earthquakes exceed a magnitude of 7.0 worldwide each year, and Dr David Rothery said this one was 'relatively shallow'.

The Professor of Planetary Geosciences at The Open University said: 'The shaking at the ground surface will have been more severe than for a deeper earthquake of the same magnitude at source. 

'Many of the subsequent aftershocks, although weaker at source, have occurred at shallower depths.'

SYRIA: Residents retrieve an injured girl from the rubble of a collapsed building in the town of Jandaris, in the countryside of Syria's northwestern city of Afrin in the rebel-held part of Aleppo province, on February 6. Rescue workers are desperately searching for survivors after the earthquakes struck across the region

Residents retrieve an injured girl from the rubble of a collapsed building in the town of Jandaris, Syria in the rebel-held part of Aleppo province, on February 6. Rescue workers are desperately searching for survivors after the earthquakes struck across the region

Tremors from the first deadly quake - which lasted about a minute - were felt as far away as the island of Cyprus, Egypt and Lebanon, and a tsunami warning was briefly issued by authorities in Italy along the country's coast

Tremors from the first deadly quake - which lasted about a minute - were felt as far away as the island of Cyprus, Egypt and Lebanon, and a tsunami warning was briefly issued by authorities in Italy along the country's coast

Why did it happen?

Catastrophic earthquakes are caused when two tectonic plates that are sliding in opposite directions stick and then slip suddenly.

They are composed of Earth's crust and the uppermost portion of the mantle, while below is the asthenosphere: the warm, viscous conveyor belt of rock on which tectonic plates ride.

They do not all move in the same direction and often clash, which builds up a huge amount of pressure between the two plates. 

Eventually, this pressure causes one plate to jolt either under or over the other. 

This releases a huge amount of energy, creating tremors and destruction to any property or infrastructure nearby.

Severe earthquakes normally occur over fault lines where tectonic plates meet, but minor tremors – which still register on the Richter sale – can happen in the middle of these plates. 

Earthquakes are detected by tracking the size, or magnitude, and intensity of the shock waves they produce, known as seismic waves.

The magnitude of an earthquake differs from its intensity, as the former refers to the measurement of energy released where the earthquake originated.

Intensity relates to the size of the seismic waves recorded by a seismograph during the event.

An aerial view of a destroyed building in Gaziantep, southern Turkey. The quake - which could be Turkey's largest ever on record - was centred north of Gaziantep, Turkey, which is about 60 miles from the Syrian border and has a population of bout 2 million

An aerial view of a destroyed building in Gaziantep, southern Turkey. The quake - which could be Turkey's largest ever on record - was centred north of Gaziantep, Turkey, which is about 60 miles from the Syrian border and has a population of bout 2 million

Turkey lies on major faultlines that border three different tectonic plates, and is therefore prone to earthquakes. 

Dr Anastasios Sextos, a professor of Earthquake Engineering at the University of Bristol, told MailOnline: 'This is a well-known region of high seismicity as it is close to the intersection of three tectonic plates. 

'The area of Aleppo and Gazientep have experienced a series of historically devastating earthquakes and an event of similar magnitude occurred about two centuries ago.'

The majority of Turkey's landmass sits on the Anatolian Plate, which is being squeezed between three other large plates.

North of the country is the Eurasian Plate, south is the African Plate and to the east lies the Arabian Plate.

These create two large faultlines – the East Anatolian and North Anatolian – which are both prone to seismic activity.

This is because the Arabian plate pushes northwards into the Eurasian plate, squeezing the Anatolian Plate westwards towards the Aegean Sea.

Catastrophic earthquakes are caused when two tectonic plates that are sliding in opposite directions stick and then slip suddenly. Tectonic plates are composed of Earth's crust and the uppermost portion of the mantle

Catastrophic earthquakes are caused when two tectonic plates that are sliding in opposite directions stick and then slip suddenly.

read more from dailymail.....

NEXT The UK's most sustainable restaurants are revealed - and it's bad news for KFC ... trends now