What is an Earthquake?
An earthquake is the ground shaking.
Earthquakes are caused by the rapid movement of rock slipping past another block of rock along fractures in Earth's crust. These fractures are called faults. Faults are locked except for the brief moment when an earthquake occurs. Slippage of these faults will produce an earthquake.
Stress builds up along these faults.When the stress gets to a point where the fault can no longer take it, slippage occurs, causing an earthquake. Where the slippage begins is called the hypocenter. The waves from the earthquake radiate outwards from the hypocenter. The spot on Earth's surface directly above the hypocenter is called the epicenter.
Earthquakes release the stress in a form of energy known as seismic waves. Seismic waves travel through Earth's lithosphere and its interior. These waves radiate outwards in all directions from the hypocenter.
Earthquakes are caused by the rapid movement of rock slipping past another block of rock along fractures in Earth's crust. These fractures are called faults. Faults are locked except for the brief moment when an earthquake occurs. Slippage of these faults will produce an earthquake.
Stress builds up along these faults.When the stress gets to a point where the fault can no longer take it, slippage occurs, causing an earthquake. Where the slippage begins is called the hypocenter. The waves from the earthquake radiate outwards from the hypocenter. The spot on Earth's surface directly above the hypocenter is called the epicenter.
Earthquakes release the stress in a form of energy known as seismic waves. Seismic waves travel through Earth's lithosphere and its interior. These waves radiate outwards in all directions from the hypocenter.