6.2 magnitude earthquake hits the South Sandwich Islands

September 3, 2011 – ANTARCTICA – A 6.2 magnitude earthquake has struck the South Sandwich volcanic islands near Antarctica at a depth of 106 km. This is the second large earthquake to strike the region in 5 months. On March 6, 2011, five days before the devastating March 9.0 earthquake and tsunami devastated Japan, a 6.5 magnitude earthquake struck the same region at a depth of 84 km. The South Sandwich Plate or microplate is a tectonic plate bounded by the subducting South American Plate to the east, the Antarctic Plate to the south, and the Scotia plate to the west. The rapid seismic activation of this region is one more indication of how tectonic plate stress is increasing as geological changes sweep through the Atlantic Ocean, hastening the spreading of the sea-floor and the subduction of tectonic plates lodged in its path. Mount Belinda is an active volcano in the Sandwich Islands but there are three other volcanoes near both of the 6.0+ earthquakes’ epicenters that are also worth watching. – The Extinction Protocol

Mount Curry is a prominent volcanic cone, 550 m, forming the summit of Zavodovski Island, South Sandwich Islands. The name is used in Argentine hydrographic publications as early as 1958. The last known eruption occurred in 1819.

Leskov Island – 190 m, 623 feet Stratovolcano: The small crescent-shaped Leskov Island lies about 50 km west of the main axis of the South Sandwich Islands, but appears to be comparable in age to volcanoes along the main arc. Leskov Island, only 900 m long and 400 m wide, is bounded by steep cliffs and is the eroded remnant of a small andesitic stratovolcano. Its arcuate, NE-facing escarpment is concave toward Crater Bay, the site of the main eruptive center. The age of Leskov Island is not known. A single Potassium-Argon determination gave an age of 0.5 million years, but fumarolic activity was recorded along the summit ridge in 1911 and 1964. Leskov has not erupted in recorded history but is thought to be Holocene.

Mount Hodson is an ice-covered stratovolcano and the highest point on Visokoi Island, South Sandwich Islands. It might have erupted in 1830 and 1930, and the summit usually steams. A September 3, 2011 5.0 magnitude aftershock struck near the volcano.