We will be looking at why the moon myth, along with talk of seismic blasting ships and an unzipping Alpine Fault aren't worth your worry. However, an "unzipping" fault is not responsible for the latest spate of quakes - if the Alpine Fault had gone, we'd all know about it. SUPPLIED The theory that the Alpine Fault on the South Island's West Coast is "unzipping" is just another myth. The Alpine Fault marks the boundary between the Australian Plate to the west and the Pacific Plate to the east. Ultimately, the movement of these plates causes earthquakes in New Zealand but the Alpine Fault itself wasn't involved this time.

Source: Stuff November 17, 2016 06:30 UTC