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1888 North Canterbury Earthquake
The 1888 North Canterbury earthquake occurred at on 1 September following a sequence of foreshocks that started the previous evening, and whose epicentre was in the North Canterbury region of the South Island of New Zealand. The epicentre was approximately west of Hanmer. In Christchurch, about southeast of the epicentre, shaking lasted for 40 to 50 seconds. The magnitude of the earthquake is estimated to be in the range 7.0–7.3. Severe damage to farm buildings in the epicentral region was reported and the top of the spire of ChristChurch Cathedral collapsed. It was the first earthquake observed to be associated with mainly horizontal fault displacement. Tectonic setting New Zealand lies along the boundary between the Australian and Pacific Plates. In the South Island, most of the relative displacement between these plates is taken up along a single dextral (right lateral) strike-slip fault with a major reverse component, the Alpine Fault. In the North Island, displace ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
GNS Science
GNS Science ( mi, Te Pū Ao), officially registered as the Institute of Geological and Nuclear Sciences Limited, is a New Zealand Crown Research Institute. It focuses on geology, geophysics (including seismology and volcanology), and nuclear science (particularly ion-beam technologies, isotope science and carbon dating). GNS Science was known as the Institute of Geological and Nuclear Sciences (IGNS) from 1992 to 2005. Originally part of the New Zealand Government's Department of Scientific and Industrial Research (DSIR), it was established as an independent organisation when the Crown Research Institutes were set up in 1992. Crown Research Institutes Act 1992. As well as undertaking basic research, and operating the national geological hazards monitoring network (GeoNet) [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hope Fault
The Hope Fault is an active dextral (right lateral) strike-slip fault in the northeastern part of South Island, New Zealand. It forms part of the Marlborough Fault System, which accommodates the transfer of displacement along the oblique convergent boundary between the Indo-Australian Plate and Pacific Plate, from the transform Alpine Fault to the Hikurangi Trench subduction zone. Extent The Hope Fault branches off from the Alpine Fault south of Hokitika and then runs in a nearly straight line for about to the east coast of South Island just north of Kaikoura, with an offshore continuation of at least . It consists of several segments, from the southwest end, the Kelly Fault, then the Hurunui, Hope River, Conway and Seaward segments. It takes its name from the Hope River, which follows the trace of much of the Hope River segment. Kelly Fault segment The junction between the Hope fault and the Alpine Fault is complex. The Kelly Fault forms a major splay of the Hope Fault from j ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
1848 Marlborough Earthquake
The 1848 Marlborough earthquake was a 7.5 () earthquake that occurred at 1:40 a.m. on 16 October 1848 and whose epicentre was in the Marlborough region of the South Island of New Zealand. In Wellington, the shaking lasted for about two minutes and caused widespread damage, especially to brick or stone structures. Most of the buildings damaged in the earthquake were rebuilt in wood and this contributed to the relatively low level of damage and loss of life in the more powerful Wairarapa earthquake that hit Wellington seven years later. Tectonic setting New Zealand lies along the boundary between the Australian and Pacific Plates. In the South Island most of the relative displacement between these plates is taken up along a single dextral (right lateral) strike-slip fault with a major reverse component, the Alpine Fault. In the North Island, the displacement is mainly taken up along the Kermadec subduction zone, although the remaining dextral strike-slip component of the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Peat
Peat (), also known as turf (), is an accumulation of partially decayed vegetation or organic matter. It is unique to natural areas called peatlands, bogs, mires, moors, or muskegs. The peatland ecosystem covers and is the most efficient carbon sink on the planet, because peatland plants capture carbon dioxide (CO2) naturally released from the peat, maintaining an equilibrium. In natural peatlands, the "annual rate of biomass production is greater than the rate of decomposition", but it takes "thousands of years for peatlands to develop the deposits of , which is the average depth of the boreal orthernpeatlands", which store around 415 gigatonnes (Gt) of carbon (about 46 times 2019 global CO2 emissions). Globally, peat stores up to 550 Gt of carbon, 42% of all soil carbon, which exceeds the carbon stored in all other vegetation types, including the world's forests, although it covers just 3% of the land's surface. ''Sphagnum'' moss, also called peat moss, is one of th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The Encyclopedia Of New Zealand
''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the most frequently used word in the English language; studies and analyses of texts have found it to account for seven percent of all printed English-language words. It is derived from gendered articles in Old English which combined in Middle English and now has a single form used with pronouns of any gender. The word can be used with both singular and plural nouns, and with a noun that starts with any letter. This is different from many other languages, which have different forms of the definite article for different genders or numbers. Pronunciation In most dialects, "the" is pronounced as (with the voiced dental fricative followed by a schwa) when followed by a consonant sound, and as (homophone of pronoun ''thee'') when followed by a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Christchurch Normal School
Cranmer Court, the former Christchurch Normal School, was one of the most significant heritage buildings in Christchurch, New Zealand. Its demolition, due to some damage in the 2011 Christchurch earthquake, was controversial. History The Canterbury Board of Education held an architectural competition in 1873 for the design of the Christchurch Normal School. At the time, education was still the responsibility of provincial government. The competition was announced in ''The Press'' by advertisement on 18 April of that year, rewarding the two best entries with £50 and £25, respectively. The Board received 12 entries, with Christchurch architect Samuel Farr winning the competition, and Dunedin-based Robert Lawson coming second. Construction began later in 1873, with Sir Charles Fergusson, the Governor of New Zealand, laying the foundation stone. The builder was Daniel Reese, who completed construction after three years. The school was opened on 3 April 1876 and was one of New Z ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Durham Street Methodist Church
The Durham Street Methodist Church in Christchurch was the earliest stone church constructed in the Canterbury region of New Zealand. It is registered as a "Historic Place – Category I" by Heritage New Zealand. The church was severely damaged by an earthquake on 4 September 2010, but collapsed during a following earthquake on 22 February 2011, killing three workers who were removing the organ. History Christchurch was mainly an Anglican settlement. The congregation of Methodists was small, but active. The first Methodist Chapel, which was located in High Street, was sold in 1864. An architectural competition was held for a new church in Durham Street. The winning architectural firm, Crouch and Wilson from Melbourne, had entered a design in the Gothic Revival style in the 1863 competition. Local architect Samuel Farr, who had come to Akaroa in early 1850, came second in the competition and was engaged to for the construction supervision. In early 1864, the foundation ston ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sediment
Sediment is a naturally occurring material that is broken down by processes of weathering and erosion, and is subsequently transported by the action of wind, water, or ice or by the force of gravity acting on the particles. For example, sand and silt can be carried in suspension in river water and on reaching the sea bed deposited by sedimentation; if buried, they may eventually become sandstone and siltstone (sedimentary rocks) through lithification. Sediments are most often transported by water (fluvial processes), but also wind (aeolian processes) and glaciers. Beach sands and river channel deposits are examples of fluvial transport and deposition, though sediment also often settles out of slow-moving or standing water in lakes and oceans. Desert sand dunes and loess are examples of aeolian transport and deposition. Glacial moraine deposits and till are ice-transported sediments. Classification Sediment can be classified based on its grain size, grain shape, and c ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Landslide
Landslides, also known as landslips, are several forms of mass wasting that may include a wide range of ground movements, such as rockfalls, deep-seated grade (slope), slope failures, mudflows, and debris flows. Landslides occur in a variety of environments, characterized by either steep or gentle slope gradients, from mountain ranges to coastal cliffs or even underwater, in which case they are called submarine landslides. Gravity is the primary driving force for a landslide to occur, but there are other factors affecting slope stability that produce specific conditions that make a slope prone to failure. In many cases, the landslide is triggered by a specific event (such as a heavy rainfall, an earthquake, a slope cut to build a road, and many others), although this is not always identifiable. Causes Landslides occur when the slope (or a portion of it) undergoes some processes that change its condition from stable to unstable. This is essentially due to a decrease in the She ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hope River (Canterbury)
The Hope River in Canterbury is one of three rivers by that name in the South Island of New Zealand. It is a tributary of the Waiau Uwha River. The Hope River rises at the Hope Pass in the Southern Alps, which is the main divide for the South Island. The river runs northeast through Lake Sumner Forest Park then south until it turns east along a large valley formed by the Hope Fault, a significant tectonic fault line. It is joined by a major tributary, the Boyle River which flows south from the Lewis Pass some above its confluence with the Waiau Uwha. The Waiau Uwha enters from a side valley and continues eastward along the Hope Fault's valley before turning south through a gorge near Hanmer Springs. A walking track follows the river and there are several huts managed by the Department of Conservation. See also *List of rivers of New Zealand This is a list of all waterways named as rivers in New Zealand. A * Aan River * Acheron River (Canterbury) * Acheron River (Marl ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Alexander McKay (geologist)
Alexander McKay (11 April 1841 – 8 July 1917) was a New Zealand geologist. He was born in Carsphairn, Kirkcudbrightshire, Scotland on 11 April 1841. McKay reached New Zealand in 1863 where he spent a number of years prospected for gold. A meeting with Julius von Haast saw a change of direction in which McKay, largely self-taught, undertook geological mapping and fossil collecting expeditions throughout the islands. In 1872 James Hector appointed him to the Geological Survey of New Zealand.Cherry Lewis, Simon J. Knell (2009) "The Making of the Geological Society of London"pp350 Geological Society of London. Retrieved February 2015 During his geological work McKay took numerous photographs. He invented a telephoto lens and also techniques for taking images of geological collections and fossils. McKay's greatest achievement was to free New Zealand sciences from the strictures of European-based thinking, developing new theories, of worldwide importance, on block faulting in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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