Italian space researchers said on Tuesday that the earthquake in Asia two days ago was so powerful that it shifted the axis around which the earth revolves.

"It was so violent that it modified in a considerable way the inclination of the axis of terrestrial rotation," said scientists at an Italian Space Agency centre in the southern town of Matera.

According to Giuseppe Bianco, one of the geological experts whospecialize in finding the exact position of geographical points, the axis moved by about five or six centimetres.

"The variation observed is very small and I don't think it could have any repercussions on the climate," he said.

On Sunday, huge tidal waves killed more than 50,000 people in some Asian countries including Sri Lanka, India, Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia the Maldives and Myanmar.

Source: Xinhua