Santiago de Chile, March 1, (RHC).- While there is no apparent connection between the quake in Haiti and the one in Chile over the weekend, many analysts say that there seems to be increased seismic activity around the world.

According to Dr. Tim Dixon, geophysics professor at the Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science in Miami, the energy released by the quake that hit Chile early Saturday morning was between 500 and 900 times that of the magnitude 7.3 quake that hit Haiti on January 12th. On the complex scale that measures earthquakes, an 8.0 quake releases 30 times the energy of a 7.0, and a 9.0 would release 30 times that, meaning 900 times more energy.

Dr. Dixon said that the amount of damage quakes cause depends in large part on the kinds of soils in which they take place, how close they are to populated areas and whether buildings have been put up to withstand earthquakes.

Saturday's earthquake near Chile took place along the Peru-Chile Trench fault line that runs the length of South America about 80 miles offshore. Experts say that the fault line runs north past Central America and about halfway up Mexico.

In Haiti, the earthquake was on the Baranquillo fault line that starts in Jamaica and runs east through Haiti and into the Dominican Republic. It is a lateral fault, with two plates moving past each other side-to-side, causing mostly lateral shaking in a quake.

In Chile, the quake was on a "thrust fault," with the Pacific Ocean's Nazca plate diving down under the South American plate over geologic eons. The fault line is at the surface about 80 miles offshore.

More than 20 aftershocks have hit near Chile since the big earthquake Saturday morning, one as big as magnitude 6.9, according to experts. And more aftershocks also are probable up and down Chile's long Pacific coast.

The death toll from Saturday’s earthquake in Chile has topped 700 and is expected to rise even more over the coming days. As many as two million people have been left homeless. The 8.8-magnitude quake is one of the strongest in recorded history.

More than 500,000 homes were destroyed or heavily damaged in Saturday morning's devastating quake. Rescue workers are searching for survivors under the rubble of collapsed buildings, but a series of strong aftershocks have hampered the rescue efforts. The quake caused widespread damage to hospitals, schools, roads and other infrastructure.

Officials said adobe homes have been most affected and that indigenous populations are most at risk. A tsunami triggered by the earthquake caused additional damage in some southern areas of Chile. The earthquake hit less than two weeks before Chilean President Michelle Bachelet leaves office.

On Sunday, Bachelet announced a series of emergency measures. She said that the damages from the quake "will require an enormous effort by both the public and private sectors, one of the largest efforts in the history of the country." And she added that the country is "facing an emergency unprecedented in the history of Chile that will require an urgent and rapid response.”

Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez expressed his solidarity towards Chile and said that he will help the victims of the earthquake in any way he can, reported Telesur news agency.

The President of the Palestinian National Authority, Mahmoud Abbas; Bolivian President Evo Morales; Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa; Peruvian President Alan Garcia, and Mexican President Felipe Calderón also expressed their solidarity, support and sympathy to the Chilean people.

Likewise, the authorities of Uruguay, Russia, Spain, the United States, Italy, the United Nations and other organizations also sent messages of support for Chile.