Underground elements are in action again in Altai

The new earthquake which occurred in the Altai mountains on the junction of the borders of Russia, Kazakhstan and China in daytime on Friday is the strongest over the past week, Learned Secretary of the Geophysical Service of the Siberian Department of the Russian Academy of Sciences Viktor Solovyov stated.

Its epicenter was in the south of the Autonomous Republic of Altai - 20 kilometers from Aktash populated area. The magnitude of the earthquake which occurred in the upper part of the earth crust at a depth of 10-15 kilometers was 5.4 on the Richter scale, Solovyov said.

The underground tremors of this earthquake were felt in a number of cities of the south of Siberia, Novosibirsk in particular.

The Learned Secretary of the Geophysical Service recalled that the first and most powerful underground tremor in Altai had been registered on September 27. More than 500 even more tangible shocks were registered after that.

The scientists link these earthquakes with the mountain-formation process which is under way in the south of Siberia. According to the representative of the Geophysical Service of the Siberian Department of the Russian Academy of Sciences, "underground tremors will occur during a few years to come but their strength will diminish."