The Orca Seamount volcano near Antarctica, which has not shown any signs of activity for a long time, has reactivated. The activity of the giant underwater volcano, which extends approximately 900 meters above the seabed and has a base diameter of approximately 11 kilometers, triggered 85,000 different earthquakes in a short time.

According to the study, the earthquakes occurred in Bransfield Strait, a narrow passage between the South Shetland Islands and the northwestern tip of Antarctica. Research with scientists from many nations revealed that earthquakes took place in 2020.

The largest were 5.9 and 6.0 magnitudes:

According to the results of the study, earthquakes occurred between August and November of 2020. Among the nearly 85,000 earthquakes that occurred in about 4 months, the two largest were 5.9 magnitude earthquakes in October 2020 and 6.0 magnitude earthquakes in November 2020. It was stated that seismic activity decreased after the 6.0 earthquake that occurred in November.

Simone Cesca of the Geosciences Research Center in Germany, which is the leader of the research, emphasized that these processes do not normally fit into a human lifetime, but occur on geological time scales. We think how the seismic activities decreased with the last earthquake, “We think that the 6-magnitude earthquake somehow created some fractures and reduced the pressure of the magma set.” explained as.