Structural Systems And Earthquakes Disasters

In Valdivia, Chile 1960 an earthquake changed the lives of many. An earthquake is the violent shaking of the ground that will destroy homes, buildings, landforms, historical monuments, and lives. Earthquakes begin with the breakage of rock along a fault line. When two tectonic plates rub against each other they create an earthquake. Earthquakes will ride along a fault line which will determine how long the quake will go on. The larger and longer the fault like the bigger the earthquake. Earthquakes send out waves, primary waves or, p waves and secondary waves or, s waves travel along the interior of the earth. These two waves are called body waves. While detecting the waves, the primary waves appear first then the secondary waves. Primary waves travel through solids, liquids, and gasses, which means they are about to travel through the liquid center. Secondary waves are only able to travel through solids which are why scientists have found that there is a loss of these waves once they reach the center.

California’s unique geography as a state makes it a very appealing place to call home. From the odd east to west transverse San Gabriel mountain ranges of the Los Angeles Basin, to the bumpy coastal ranges of the Bay Area, any person can find a compatible topographic terrain to their liking. California may seem to be the perfect place to live with its ideal climate and extensive geographic features. However, due to California’s location over the shifting continental plates, coupled with its enormous and also multiple faults, at any time this great state can fall victim to a seismic disaster. After examining evidence from both Rong-Gong Lin’s II Los Angeles Times article of April 18, 2016 and the NOVA videos Killer Quake ( 2006), Earthquake (2007), as well as Geologic Journey II – Episode 3 (The Pacific Rim: Americas) – Part 3 (San Francisco) and The Great San Francisco Earthquake (American Experience ~ 2005), one can take a comparative account of the three major earthquakes of California’s past. Although each earthquake was very devastating on is own; the Great Quake 0f 1906, the Loma Prieta quake of 1989, and the NorthRidge quake of 1994 each amounted to an extensive forfeiture of property and life. Each of these earthquakes created much suffering and loss. It is imperative for each citizen of this great state to understand the damage that a California quake can actually do and be prepared; for the threat of one always looms.

Over more than 50 decades there has been multiple earthquakes that have been caused by the activity that takes place beneath and above the surface of the earth. For every earthquake there are various effects and consequences, these are generally not preventable but teachable moments. As we study and explore landforms we learn and better understand how today 's structures came about, what took place decades ago and where do we go from here. Thanks to the technology and inquiring minds we are able to study past events like the 1906 San Francisco earthquake and the 1964 Alaska earthquake. In comparing these two events we can get an overview of what happened and better prepare ourselves for something like that in the future.

Of all the naturally occurring events on Earth, earthquakes are among the most devastating and bring a lot of truth to the statement, “Just because something is natural does not mean it is not dangerous.” Earthquakes are one of the most natural things I can think of that can cause massive damage and loss of human live in many instances, and the effects are sometimes long term. “Nothing happens without a force. Many geophysicists accept the theory that continents move as a result of the forces generated by mantel convection deep within Earth – motions driven by our planet’s internal heat energy” (Trefil & Hazen, 2010). According to National Geographic (1996-2012), constant movement in the tectonic plates that make up the Earth’s

Before an earthquake even occurs it is possible to predict roughly where and when it will happen due to detailed seismic records and sophisticated technology such as radon gas emissions, remote sensing and low-frequency electromagnetic activity. In MEDCs like the US, especially around California, dedicated groups of scientists devote their careers to the investigation of earthquake hazards and management. They have access to the latest technology, computers and forecasting to enable them to find out and report back to the wider population about any possible risks. However, in LEDCs like Iran, researching and educating their population about earthquakes is not a priority. Their main goal is to develop their profitable oil reserves and they are still relatively underdeveloped in comparison to the US with a GDP per capita of $818.7 billion compared with America’s $14.66 trillion. The fact that they are not fully developed as a nation puts them at an immediate disadvantage in terms of their ability to prepare for an earthquake.

Large magnitude earthquakes occur on plate boundaries and can produce hazards such as movement along faults, landslides, and tsunamis. In North America, the western coast is an active margin, meaning that it is home to earthquakes and

The energy coming from this rupture is called seismic waves. These waves fan out in every direction from the earthquakes epicenter and results in intense shaking. Once this shaking reaches the earth’s surface, everything from the ground up will also proceed to shake (Wald 2012). In order to measure the size of an earthquake, scientists use seismographs. Seismographs consist of a base, a spring, pen, rotating drum, and a heavy weight. The base is placed in the ground while the weight hangs above. When an earthquake occurs the spring absorbs the shaking and the weight and pen, which remain motionless, record the difference between the shaking and motionless part of the seismograph. Seismograph recordings consist of short and long wavy lines, with long lines indicating a larger earthquake (Wald 2012). These recordings are then

The most common cause of earthquakes is movement along faults. Earth’s crust is divided into tectonic plates, which grind past each other at fault boundaries. As tectonic plates move,

Earthquakes are sudden trembling or shaking vibrations. Earthquakes are large spinning spiral winds, that comes together by rocks underground breaks along the fault. There are two types of earthquakes, there is the body waves and the surface waves. Body waves travel at 7/8 km. The body wave is the fastest of the two waves. The surface waves act as a gravity waves that are between two fluids with different density. Unlike hurricanes,

To find out what had been happening below the surface, researchers created 3D images of the mantle portion of the North American Plate. Seismologists image the internal part of the Earth by tracing the paths of seismic waves created by earthquakes as they move through the ground. The waves move faster through colder rocks and less quickly through warmer rocks. Rocks cool and harden as they become older, so the faster seismic waves, the older the rock.

Earthquakes are a sudden and violent shaking of the ground, sometimes causing great destruction, as a result of movements within the earth's crust. You can’t know when or how much the damage of the shock will be. I think that predicting earthquakes is a bad science because of how often and not they happen.

Plate tectonics happens when the convection currents in the mantle move and the earth breaks and the result is earthquakes. “Before plate tectonics, people had to come up with explanations of the geologic features in their regions….” (www.livescience.com) This shows how important plate tectonics is to scientist and to helps explain to people. JApan plus many other places have been destroyed by plate tectonics happening. “1995 Earthquake

     An Earthquake is the shaking of the earth's surface caused by rapid movement of the earth's rocky outer layer. The sudden shaking of the ground that occurs when masses of rock change position below the Earth's surface is called an earthquake. The shifting masses send out shock waves that may be powerful enough to alter the surface of the Earth, thrusting up cliffs and opening great cracks in the ground.

An earthquake is the violent shaking of the ground which is caused by sudden movement in the Earth’s crust. Earthquakes occur because the tension gets released from inside the crust of the earth. Tectonic plates move alongside and past each other but they do not always move smoothly and when they get stuck it

An earthquake is the shaking of the surface of the earth due to the sudden release of energy, causing seismic waves that make the ground shake. This occurs when two tectonic plates push against each other until the force of friction is overcome releasing the built-up energy and allowing a small amount of movement of the plates. This movement of the tectonic plates produces the 4 types of seismic waves we feel in earthquakes, P waves, S waves, Love waves and Rayleigh waves.