Scientists know a tide gauge at Kaikoura rose 90 centimetres during Monday's magnitude 7.8 earthquake, but that's one of the few pieces of detailed data so far about how much the level of the coastline has risen.

There is also information about land movement from a network of continuous GPS stations run by GeoNet and Linz showing a rise of about a metre at Cape Campbell, at the southern end of Clifford Bay.

Data from the stations also show Cape Campbell moved horizontally north-east by two to three metres.

Teams are now racing around the affected areas, taking measurements to build a picture showing how the earth has changed since the quake.

GNS Science map showing how the ground has moved as a result of the Kaikoura earthquake, measured at continuous GPS stations.

Many anecdotal reports suggest a two-metre rise at the coast, and there's even one report of a reef rising six metres. As a result large numbers of paua, crayfish and other marine life were stranded out of the water.

The New Zealand earthquake moved parts of the country several metres, such as this house on the Kaikoura Coast. Photo: Pilar Villamor/GNS Science/Earthquake Commission

"All sorts of numbers are flying around," GNS Science earthquake geologist Nicola Litchfield said.

The uplift would have happened during the 90 seconds to two minutes the quake lasted, and given the event started in Culverden it probably didn't happen in the first 30 seconds.

"It would have been amazing if it had been daylight and someone had seen it," Litchfield said.

Data showing horizontal movements of the Earth during the magnitude-7.8 Kaikoura earthquake. Information from a continuous GPS station network run by GeoNet and Linz with some data also from Global Survey and Eliot Sinclair.

Uplift would have been greater on one side of a fault than the other. It was not yet known whether the land in some places at the coast had dropped relative to sea level.

Six faults were known for sure to have ruptured during the quake. Of those, four went along the coast and out into the sea.

Ward Beach Rocks have risen considerably since the 7.5 earthquake. Photo: Fairfax Media NZ/ Marlborough Express

From the air it appeared as if land had lifted from Cape Campbell in Marlborough to south of Kaikoura, Litchfield said.

It was easier to see the uplift along the coast but the same thing would have happened inland. Land in the Kaikoura ranges would also have been uplifted.

Vertical movement measured at the continuous GPS stations. Red shows uplift, while blue shows areas where the ground level has dropped.

No continuous GPS data was available to immediately show changes in ground level in the mountains, but new measurements would be made and compared to past figures to show the extent of uplift.

Satellite data could also provide much more information about the extent of the uplift.

Ward beach, where the seabed has risen 1.8 metres. Photo: Fairfax Media NZ/Marlborough Express

"There's a fault there that broke in the first earthquake," Litchfield said.

"We assume that then triggered the rupture of the next fault and the next fault and the next fault, and that pattern headed up north towards Kekerengu where it went offshore."

It also went offshore at other faults. It wasn't known how far the faults may have ruptured offshore, but onshore the rupture of faults probably extended for about 130 kilometres. At least two quakes had joined together to make the one big event.

Earthquakes had lifted land in many places throughout New Zealand. For instance, the magnitude 8.2 to 8.3 Wairarapa earthquake in 1855 lifted Wellington Harbour by about two metres.

There were raised beaches all along the Kaikoura Coast from earthquakes over thousands of years, but they were not well preserved.

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