The 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake, known by the scientific community as the Sumatra-Andaman earthquake, was an undersea earthquake that occurred at 00:58:53 UTC (07:58:53 local time) on December 26, 2004.
The earthquake generated a tsunami that was among the deadliest disasters in modern history, killing well over 240,000 people.
Various values were given for the magnitude of the earthquake, ranging from 9.0 to 9.3 (which would make it the second largest earthquake ever recorded on a seismograph), though authoritative estimates now put the magnitude at 9.15.
In May 2005, scientists reported that the earthquake itself lasted nearly ten minutes when most major earthquakes last no more than a few seconds; it caused the entire planet to vibrate at least a few centimetres
It also triggered earthquakes elsewhere, as far away as Alaska
The earthquake originated in the Indian Ocean just north of Simeulue island, off the western coast of northern Sumatra, Indonesia.
The resulting tsunami devastated the shores of Indonesia, Sri Lanka , South India, Thailand and other countries with waves up to 30 m (100 feet).
It caused serious damage and deaths as far as the east coast of Africa, with the furthest recorded death due to the tsunami occurring at Port Elizabeth in South Africa, 8,000km (5,000 miles) away from the epicentre.
Anywhere from 200,000 to 370,000 people are thought to have died as a result of the tsunami.
