earthquake
An earthquake is what happens when two blocks of the earth suddenly slip past one another. The surface where they slip is called the fault or fault plane. The location below the earth’s surface where the earthquake starts is called the hypocenter, and the location directly above it on the surface of the earth is called the epicenter.
Sometimes an earthquake has foreshocks. These are smaller earthquakes that happen in the same place as the larger earthquake that follows. Scientists can’t tell that an earthquake is a foreshock until the larger earthquake happens. The largest, main earthquake is called the mainshock. Mainshocks always have aftershocks that follow. These are smaller earthquakes that occur afterwards in the same place as the mainshock. Depending on the size of the mainshock, aftershocks can continue for weeks, months, and even years after the mainshock!
What causes earthquakes and where do they happen?
earth has four major layers: the inner core, outer core, mantle and crust. The crust and the top of the mantle make up a thin skin on the surface of our planet.
The January 1 quake destroyed and toppled buildings, caused fires and knocked out infrastructure on the Noto Peninsula just as families were celebrating New Year’s Day.
Sitting on top of four major tectonic plates along the western edge of the Pacific “Ring of Fire”, Japan is one of the world’s most tectonically active countries.
The archipelago, home to around 125 million people, experiences around 1,500 jolts every year and accounts for around 18 percent of the world’s earthquakes.
The vast majority are mild, although the damage they cause varies according to their location and the depth below the Earth’s surface at which they strike.
At least 250 people killed, 27 missing, 423 injured and many left homeless. About 1,500 houses
This was the highest intensity earthquake ever observed in New Jersey. Three shocks were felt along the coast from Sandy Hook to Toms River. Maximum intensities of VII were observed at Asbury Park and Long Branch. Several chimneys fell, plaster cracked, and articles were thrown from shelves. The felt area extended over approximately 7,800 square kilometers damaged or destroyed and 278 boats sunk or damaged. Most of the casualties and damage were caused by a tsunami along the southeast coast of Jawa. Tsunami runup of 500 meters occurred in some places. The quake was felt strongly across Bali, central and eastern Jawa, Lombok and Sumbawa Islands
This earthquake was located about 200 kilometers northwest of Perth in the area of Cadoux. One person was reported injured and damage was estimated at approximately $1.5 million in the Cadoux area. 12-kilometer long north-south surface rupture reported east of Cadoux.
But this skin is not all in one piece – it is made up of many pieces like a puzzle covering the surface of the earth. Not only that, but these puzzle pieces keep slowly moving around, sliding past one another and bumping into each other. We call these puzzle pieces tectonic plates, and the edges of the plates are called the plate boundaries. The plate boundaries are made up of many faults, and most of the earthquakes around the world occur on these faults. Since the edges of the plates are rough, they get stuck while the rest of the plate keeps moving. Finally, when the plate has moved far enough, the edges unstick on one of the faults and there is an earthquake.
