Earthquakes

Plate Tectonics
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 Earthquake basics
Earthquake basics

By the end of this section, you will:

Be able to describe where
earthquakes occur.
Understand the terms
focus and epicentre.
Be able to suggest ways
to measure earthquakes.

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Where do earthquakes occur?

Earthquakes are vibrations of the earth’s crust caused by

movement at plate boundaries and major fault lines. The red
areas on the map are where earthquakes are most common.

North Eurasian
American Plate
Plate
Pacific
Plate
African
South Plate
Indo- American
Australian Plate
Plate Nazca
Plate

Do the location of earthquakes form a pattern?

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What are earthquakes?

Earthquakes can occur at all four major plate boundaries but

the most severe earthquakes usually occur at conservative
and destructive plate boundaries.

Conservative boundary

Destructive boundary

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Destructive plate boundary

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Conservative plate boundary

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Epicentre and focus

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