Australia is braced for a tsunami after a powerful earthquake struck an island in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. The United States Geological Survey (USGS) indicates that a strong shake was felt at the epicentre of the quake on Macquarie Island.
The quake was reportedly at a depth of 29.3km (18.21 miles). The Joint Australian Tsunami Warning Centre has now said that Australia is on tsunami alert But the US Tsunami Warning System has indicated a tsunami will likely pose little threat following the quake.
This includes to Macquarie, surrounding island territories as well as mainland Australia. The USGS originally registered the quake as having a magnitude of 7.3, but later revised this figure to 6.7. Macquarie Island lies about halfway between New Zealand and Antarctica, and has been a part of Tasmania, Australia, since 1900.
Since 1948, the Australian Antarctic Division has maintained a permanent base, the Macquarie Island Station, on the northern end of the island. The population of the base, constituting the island's only human inhabitants, usually varies from 20 to 40 people over the year.
