The Tintina Rift in Yukon, Canada, has been dormant for about 12,000 years. (Photo: Gagandeep Ghuman/Getty Images)
A major fault in Canada's Yukon that has been dormant for at least 12,000 years has the potential to trigger earthquakes of at least magnitude 7.5, according to new research.
Based on the stress accumulated in the Tintina fault over the past 2.6 million years, it is currently under enough stress to trigger a major earthquake within a human lifetime, researchers reported July 15 in the journal Geophysical Research Letters. The discovery could prompt experts to rethink the region's seismic hazard, the study's authors said.
A magnitude 7.5 earthquake could pose a threat to several small communities in the remote Yukon. However, it is important to note that the Tintina fault's ability to produce such a large earthquake is remarkable, as the fault remained quiet even before the end of the last ice age.
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