Earthquakes are naturally reoccuring ecological patterns. In a sense, they’re the Earth’s natural means of releasing stress and energy as a result of plate movement under the surface. Over thousands of years, like many other ecological behaviors, seismic activities have compelled scientists to study countless records of their impact in the natural world and in human civilization. They’ve also shaped the way we’ve lived relevant to our environments, designed our very continents, and are revealing to us insights of how the world is made up. In this essay, research and discussion will highlight the importance of earthquakes in earth systems, the relationship between earthquakes and the internal structure of the Earth, and issues or debate being brought up in the scientific community about it.
Earthquakes are a very important subject of environmental and geological research. “Despite their potential for destruction, they can be an aid for science” (Shipman; Wilson; Higgins; Torres, 2015). The techniques required to map the interior of the Earth need “a source of waves, strong enough energy to penetrate, the ability to generate these waves continuously in places that will penetrate the area of interest, and the ability to detect the resulting reflected and refracted waves when they emerge” (Tulane University, 2015). Similar to how we use light, sound, radio, magnetic, and other waves to judge the workings or configurations of things and spaces in our universe, so do we with
Volcanoes and Earthquakes are two of the most intriguing natural disasters that can occur on earth. Unlike hurricanes and tornadoes, they can awaken at almost any point in time throughout the year. These two natural disasters are also different from others because they occur on the layers of the earth itself. Volcanoes, while large to us, are actually small, conical patches of earth that spurt and ooze hot molten lava from the core, and can destroy areas of land triple their size. Earthquakes, on the other hand, are severe jolts felt on land due to the movement of earths tectonic plates. Some may describe earthquakes as being similar to riding a bike down a flight of stairs. The impact of an earthquakes can take down even the largest buildings and strongest structures. All natural disasters can have damaging effects on land, some more than others, and all can be measured or predicted in different ways. Although earthquakes and volcanoes are similar to each other, the two are still very comparable. A few of these similarities and differences include the cause of their occurrence, and how their occurrence impacts the environment.
D. P-wave amplitude is larger than all the other seismic waves recorded on a seismogram.
• This earthquake may not have released all of the strain stored in its rocks next to the fault this reveals a potential earthquake in the Santa Cruz Mountains in the near future. The occurrence of the earthquake showed that the Earth did not exhaust all its strain and hence other earthquakes could be expected. However, the dates could not be predicted. The extent of the damage could have been much more devastating for the region, but with the earthquake occurring near the coast this made half of the felt area westward in the Pacific Ocean. The occurrence of aftershocks ten days later reinforces the unpredictability nature and hence makes Geology to be a study that is always evolving. In conclusion, the Earth and the study of cannot be exhausted as every natural occurrence provides a new puzzle to be solved.
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
A ‘hazard’ can be defined as a geophysical process operating within the lithosphere, atmosphere, hydrosphere or biosphere which could potentially lead to the loss of human life or property. However, an earthquake only becomes hazardous and therefore needs management if it occurs within close proximity to a vulnerable population. To some extent, any human settlement around the world situated close to or on top of an area of seismic activity is vulnerable. However, not all nations suffer equal devastation.
Most earthquake happen inside the lithosphere. Because with more deeper it gets, rocks are more softened, or the viscosity increases. The more viscosity the rock gets, the more it absorbs energy and deform smoothly. Base on this viscosity-elasticity nature of the lithosphere, Gunawardana (2017) assumed that the elastic energy accumulated is proportional to the earthquakes released energy.
Earthquake Hazards occur when there are adverse effects on human activities. This can include surface faulting, ground shaking and liquefaction. In this essay I will be discussing the factors that affect earthquakes, whether human such as population density, urbanisation and earthquake mitigation or physical such as liquefaction, magnitude, landslides and proximity to the focus.
For this assignment, we are to examine earthquake activity around the world. Specifically, we are to examine the United States Geological Survey (USGS) earthquake website searching for earthquakes that have occurred around the world with a magnitude greater than two point five in the last seven days. Responses to the questions of the lab, based on the information obtained from the USGS website at 10:23 AM on Friday, January 3, 2014, are the basis of this paper.
Ultimately, to fully comprehend a specific earthquake one must know how earthquakes form as well as, how they work. An earthquake is the shaking and vibration of the Earth 's crust. This happens when two blocks of the earth suddenly slip past one another
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.
Volcanoes and Earthquakes are two of the most intriguing natural disasters that can occur on earth. Unlike hurricanes and tornadoes, they can awaken at almost any point in time throughout the year. These two natural disasters are also different from others because they occur on the layers of the earth itself. Volcanoes, while large to us, are actually small, conical patches of earth that spurt and ooze hot molten lava from the core, and can destroy areas of land triple their size. Earthquakes, on the other hand, are severe jolts felt on land due to the movement of earths tectonic plates. Some may describe earthquakes as being similar to riding a bike down a flight of stairs. The impact of an earthquakes can take down even the largest buildings and strongest structures. All natural disasters can have damaging effects on land, some more than others, and all can be measured or predicted in different ways. Although earthquakes and volcanoes are similar to each other, the two are still very comparable. A few of these similarities and differences include the cause of their occurrence, and how their occurrence impacts the environment.
<center><b>What is the evidence for our knowledge of the internal structure of the Earth?</b></center><br><br>As we enter the twenty first century we are beginning to learn more and more about the composition of the Earth. Early predictions have thrown up some rather strange and peculiar thoughts as to what is making up our Earth, but now day¡¦s scientists can be confident that the Earth is made up of what they think. As from experiments and other sources of information a picture to what is really down there is becoming much clearer.<br><br>So how do these scientists know that the Earth¡¦s sections are made up of different compositions, and how do we know that the physical state of each layer is what it is?<br><br>The outmost layer of the
4. EXPLAIN THE RISK AND NATURAL HAZARDS EARTHQUAKES AND VOLCANIC ACTIVITIES. HOW CAN WE PLAN TO CONTROL THESE RISKS?
Where are earthquakes and volcanoes found? Volcanoes and earthquakes have been known to man for thousands of years, but until fairly recently their distribution on the globe was thought of as totally haphazard with each event an isolated phenomenon. Yet, if the positioning of the world’s volcanoes is considered, it can be seen that most volcanoes are situated within several hundred kilometres of the sea, and moreover, that the regions of volcanic activity are concentrated into several girdles or bands circling the Earth. Most notable amongst these are the so-called “Ring of Fire” surrounding the Pacific Ocean (see figure 1), and the more tenuous and disjointed line running down the centre of the Atlantic Ocean. Throughout geological history, igneous activity has been restricted in the same way, as studies of ancient igneous rocks show.