Nepal quake doesn't fit

Abstract

An earthquake in the foothills of the Himalaya Mountains in Nepal August 21 killed more than 700 people and caused landslides and damage to buildings over a wide area. Preliminary information on the location of the magnitude (Ms)‐6.6 quake may also send a tremor or two through generally accepted theories about the geometry and mechanics of India's subduction beneath Asia.The earthquake occurred near the geologic boundary between the Indo‐Gangetic basin and the Himalayas, 200 km southeast of Katmandu. The epicenter of the quake, as determined by the U.S. Geological Survey's National Earthquake Information Service in Denver, Colo., was at 26.6°N, 86.6°E, nearly coincident with that of a magnitude‐8.3 earthquake that rocked the region in 1934. A series of great earthquakes [M⩾8] has taken place during the past 2 centuries along the length of the range, near the topographic break that marks the southern limit of Himalayan deformation. Most earthquakes in the region occur under the high Himalaya, 100–200 km farther north, and are typically of small to moderate size.