EARTHQUAKES!

What are Earthquakes?

Tremors or vibrations in the Earth’s crust
How do earthquakes occur?
⬜ Convergence, divergence and sliding of crustal
plates create huge amounts of friction
between rock surfaces
⬜ The friction puts stress the rocks
⬜ The stress causes the rocks to bend and stored
energy accumulates in the bend
⬜ When the stress becomes too great, the rocks
break and the stored energy is released as
seismic waves which cause ground vibrations
Buildup of stress over time...
 What causes earthquakes?
⬜ Elastic Rebound-is an
explanation for how energy is
spread during earthquakes. As
rocks on opposite sides of a
fault are subjected to force
and shift, they accumulate
energy and slowly deform until
their internal strength is
exceeded.

⬜ Sources of stress
◼ Plate Tectonics
 What causes earthquakes?
⬜ Over many years, rocks on opposite sides of a fault
move, but friction/stress on fault "locks" it and
prevents slip
⬜ Eventually strain accumulated overcomes
friction/stress, and fault slips suddenly producing
earthquakes
Earthquake Terminology
 9.5, Chile, 1960, (1,655)

7.9, lasted 3.5 sec

Turkey, 1990
(17,000)

7.8, Nepal, 2015

(5,000)
7.4, Italy, 1693 (60,000)
 Effects of Earthquakes
⬜ Ground Rupture
⬜ Death
⬜ Building collapse
Effects
⬜ Fires
⬜ Liquefaction
⬜ Landslides
 Damage: Key Factors
⬜ Amount & duration of shaking
⬜ Water content of soil
⬜ Population concentration
⬜ Building construction
⬜ Distance from Epicenter
⬜ Depth of focus
⬜ Direction of rupture
⬜ Material amplification
2010 Haiti Earthquake: Strike-Slip Fault
Earthquake Damage
 Tsunamis result from
Earthquakes that occur on
the ocean floor.
6. tsunami (ocean wave) - large ocean wave
produced by ocean floor earthquakes

http://www.pbs.org/wnet/savageearth/animations/tsunami/main.html
2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami
- 9.0 magnitude
earthquake in
Indian Ocean
- one of the
worst in history
- India Plate and
Burma Plate
subduction
zone
A Rogue Wave! NOT a Tsunami
Tsunami Impact
Before and after
Tsunami Damage
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