Talk:Aftershock

When can an aftershock be considered a new earthquake? Fox news is reporting the March 28/29th quake in Indonesia as an aftershock of the December 26th quake in 2004. I would think that after three months a new tremor in the same area would no longer be considered an aftershock.

Aftershocks can continue for many years after a large earthquake. However, the magnitude of the aftershocks drops quickly with time. I don't think it's clear as of this writing whether the March 28/29 quake is an aftershock or a new main shock. It is certainly related to the December quake, though. Gwimpey 03:31, Mar 29, 2005 (UTC)