There was an earthquake today in Alaska near the newly discovered dangerous splay-fault area on the edge of the "Shumagin-Gap," an area roughly between Perryville and Sand Point, which is an area overdue for a major earthquake in the 9.0 range, similar to the one in 2011 in Japan which shifted the earth's axis and moved the coast of Japan by eight feet. The quake was magnitude 5.0 and was 22 miles south of Perryville.
This is significant because this new geologic structure, I believe, can be "jarred loose," like the one near Japan, by a smaller quake such as this one. Without knowing where the boundaries of the splay-fault are, it's hard to determine, but, the 5.0 quake was on the edge of the Shumagin Gap. The problem with these dangerous splay-faults from what I've been reading is that they are like a piece of a broken ceramic dinner plate. If the main earth's plate under the sea-floor was to shift, it could raise the smaller broken off plate, like in Japan, and create a massive Tsunami that could reach Hawaii. The reason the recent quake last month did not cause the expected Tsunami, was because it was not in this area for one, and it was not a vertical-lifting of the sea-floor which is what causes large Tsunami's, but was a side-ways slip of sea-floor known as a "Megathrust" slip-strike of the fault. What concerns me, is that this smaller quake could dislodge the smaller plate-section, making a vertical displacement of sea-water happen, in addition to the slip-strike of the major sea-floor fault. That would be a massive disaster similar to the 1964 Alaska quake and the 2011 Japan quake, that shifted huge sections of land-masses and even the earth's axis. You do the math--
Here's some pictures: (these may be subject to copyrights and are used here for demo or theory purposes only)
This is what the experts say:
"This new research indicates that the Shumagin Gap, contrary to recent speculation that it might be a relatively “safe” seismic zone in the arc, may pose a threat similar to that of the rest of the Aleutian subduction zone. Using advanced, ship-based 3-D seismic imaging, the researchers discovered large, localized faults (called “splay faults”) above the megathrust (see Figure 2). While the majority of the megathrust may not be seismically locked in the gap, these splay faults could accumulate the stresses necessary for a large, tsunamigenic earthquake. Similar splay faults moved during the 2010 M9.0 Tohoku earthquake and contributed to the earthquake being much larger than previously thought possible in that area of Japan."
(Newsweek.com; Aug 1st, 2017).
"What scientists failed to realize was that part of the edge of the continental plate had become detached—and that this posed a major risk. A smaller earthquake dislodged the detached section, creating the huge earthquake and tsunami that followed. While scientists knew this fault existed, they did not understand the devastation it could cause.
In their study, researchers found a region of the Shumagin Gap that is detached in the same way. The fault they identified stretches about 90 miles roughly parallel to the land and extends over 20 miles down. The maps suggest the seafloor has dropped to one side and risen on the other. Researchers also found a cluster of seismic activity near where the new fault meets the plate boundary, indicating it is active." (earthquake.alaska.edu)
(copyright of University of Alaska Fairbanks, Alaska Earthquake Center, 2017).
If this 5.0 quake today was in the splay-fault area, along the right border of this map, or any other quakes happening in this area, it could prove to be very dangerous, since that is what happened before the massive 2011 Tohoku Japan quake that killed over 15,000 people, many of whom have not found homes yet. The yellow area of the map is where the sea-floor could lift and move massive amounts of water.
Also, from a Christian point of view, these quakes, including increased activity along the "Ring of Fire," such as in Mexico, and symbolic signs such as the recent quake there occurring on the anniversary of the 1985 quake there that took the lives of so many people, are considered "birth-pangs," of the end-times, including the 1964 quake occurring on a "Good Friday," a day that remembers when Jesus died for the sins of the world. The Lord is a loving-God, and human suffering caused by wars and natural disasters, grieves the Lord, and when forces of evil influence disturbed individuals to disrupt peaceful life, it can also be seen as warning signs that God is holding them back, as the Bible describes, allowing people time to turn from evil and choose sides, before the "meek will inherit the earth," or the kind-hearted people--because kindness matters to God.