More than 2,000 people died when a powerful magnitude 6.8 earthquake struck Morocco on 8 September.
- The epicentre was in the High Atlas Mountains, 71km (44 miles) south-west of Marrakesh. The tectonic activity in Morocco primarily involves the convergence of the Eurasian and the Nubian (African) plates.
- The Eurasian Plate pushing against the Nubian Plate is what led to the formation of the Atlas Mountains, which run through Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia.
- The mountains are where the epicentre of this recent earthquake was. The High Atlas Mountains have a unique geological feature where the Earth’s outermost and hard layer, called the lithosphere, is thinner than usual, combined with an unusual rise of the mantle.
- All these features could have influenced the occurrence of this high magnitude earthquake.
- The mountain separates the Sahara Desert from the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean; the name “Atlantic” is derived from the mountain range.
