Earthquakes

• Key concepts:
• To understand that the Earth is made from 4 different layers
• To understand why earthquakes happen
• To understand why earthquakes usually happen at plate boundaries
• To understand that earthquakes release seismic waves which can be
measured using seismographs
What is an earthquake?
• Earthquakes are natural vibrations caused by sudden movements in
the Earth’s crust, the Earth’s thin outer layer.
• Earthquakes are a type of natural hazard.
Natural hazards are natural events that cause damage to property (like
houses and farms) people and the environment. Other natural hazards
are things like volcanoes, tsunamis, tornadoes, hurricanes and floods
. • Earthquakes are natural hazards because the shaking of the Earth’s
surface can cause city buildings to collapse and injuring and killing
thousands of people.
• Geologists study earthquakes to understand where they might
happen and how people can be prepared and protected when an
earthquake strikes.
The Earth is made of four basic layers: a solid crust, a hot, nearly solid mantle, a liquid outer core and a
solid inner core.

https://spaceplace.nasa.gov/earthquakes/en/
The Earth’s crust and upper parts of the mantle make up a thin skin on
the surface of the Earth.
This skin is not all in one piece but is broken up into huge slabs a bit like
a giant jigsaw puzzle.
These pieces are called tectonic plates and the edges of the plates are
called plate boundaries. The plates move around on the surface of the
Earth.
You can’t feel the plates moving around because they move really
slowly at about the same speed as your fingernails grow!
Almost all earthquakes that happen on Earth happen in the zones
between two or more different plates which are called plate
boundaries
Earth's crust is made of several tectonic plates, which slowly move around Earth's surface. Most tectonic activity,
including earthquakes, occurs where these plates meet.
Image adapted from: Australian Academy of Science.
• The edges of tectonic plates are jagged and rough. This means that
when they push and grind past each other, at plate boundaries they
generate lots of friction
• Sometimes blocks of rock can become locked together. When this
happens, the plates get stuck together the energy that would
normally cause the blocks to move past each other is stored up
• Eventually the stress builds up so much that the plates suddenly jolt
into a new position. This movement releases vibrations called seismic
waves which travel through the Earth, shaking the surface, including
anything on it. This is an earthquake.
• The point at which the earthquake occurs below the Earth’s surface is
called the focus, the point directly above the focus on the Earth’s
surface is known as the epicentre.
• When an earthquake happens it releases vibrations which travel
outward from the focus in every direction. When these vibrations
reach the surface they cause the ground to shake.
• The vibrations travel as waves of energy known as seismic waves.
Geologists measure these seismic waves at different stations around
the Earth to work out where an earthquake has occurred.
• There are three main types of seismic wave.
The first type are known as surface waves. They travel through the
Earth’s crust away from the focus in all directions. They move from side
to side and up and down – surface waves cause most damage to
buildings in an earthquake.
The second type of seismic wave released from an earthquake is called
a P wave. P waves travel through the whole Earth including the core.
They travel through the Earth by pushing and pulling rocks in the
direction they are travelling.
The third type of seismic wave is called an S wave, these waves from
side to side as they go forward. S waves can’t travel through liquid so
they can’t travel through the Earths outer core which is made from
liquid metal.
• How are they measured?
• Geologists measure seismic waves using instruments called
seismographs. In the past, seismographs worked by having a pen
suspended on a weight that then drew a line onto a rotating drum
covered with graph paper. When the ground shook in an earthquake,
the drum would go up and down and create a wiggly line on the drum.
The more the ground shook the wigglier the line would be!
• Today geologists use seismographs which operate using a similar
process but instead of pen and paper they use electromagnets which
generate a voltage when there is an earthquake and this voltage is
then transmitted to a computer display.
A seismometer records seismic waves as a series of zig-zags.
Credit: Wikimedia Commons user Z22, CC BY-SA 3.0
A seismograph record of the 2011 Tohoku, Japan earthquake,
recorded on the other side of the Pacific Ocean at the Hawaii
Volcanoes National Park. Image adapted from: Joe Parks; CC BY
NC 2.0
• How are they measured?
• The strength or size of an earthquake is called it’s magnitude. The
bigger the earthquake, the more energy released and the bigger the
earthquake’s magnitude. An earthquake with a large magnitude will
make the Earth’s surface shake more and usually cause more damage
than a smaller magnitude earthquake.
• As well as working out how big an earthquake is geologists also need
to work out where an earthquake has struck. They do this by looking at
the P and S seismic waves. S waves travel slower than P waves which
means that the further you are away from the earthquake the more
spread apart these two waves will be on your seismograph
 • Geologists know where earthquakes are likely to happen but it is
impossible to predict when an earthquake will occur. It is important
for earthquake-prone countries such as Japan to be prepared at all
times.
• Engineering buildings to withstand earthquakes is extremely
important in built up cities such as Tokyo in Japan.
Possible risk reduction methods:
Non-Structural:
• Community Preparedness- is vital for mitigating earthquake impact
• Planning – The Bureau of Indian Standards has published building
codes & guidelines for safe construction of buildings against
earthquakes.
• Public Education – Educating the public on causes and characteristics
of an earthquake and preparedness measures
• Educating the public is also very important so that people know what
to do if they feel an earthquake. Generally staying indoors under a
sturdy table or doorframe is the safest thing to do.
• Mock drills etc. public awareness camps
Possible risk reduction methods:
Structural:
• Engineered structures –
Buildings designed and constructed as per the building bylaws to
withstand ground shaking.
The soil type needs to be analyzed before construction. Building built
on soft soil are more likely to get damaged, even if the magnitude of
the earthquake is not strong.
• Engineering that allows buildings to ‘wobble’ instead of remaining
still in an earthquake can help stop buildings collapsing and potentially
save thousands of lives during a large earthquake.
• Essential requirements in Masonry building:
• Stiff foundation
• Good connection between walls and foundation
• Good connection at wall corners
• Walls with small openings
• Good connection between roof and walls –Lintel Band
• Roof that stays together as a single integrated unit during earthquake
• Planning the structure as per the load – Dead weight and live weight
• Other useful ways to stop building collapsing is to install computer
controlled weights on the roof, build from fire resistant materials
• Install automatic shutters which prevent the windows for shattering
and injuring people during an earthquake
• Buildings can either be designed and build as earthquake resistant or
they can be retrofitted – this means that new technologies can be
applied to older buildings to help make them more resistant to
earthquakes.
• Make sure buildings have good road access and open areas for
people to evacuate safely.
References:
https://www.geolsoc.org.uk/~/media/shared/documents/education%2
0and%20careers/Resources/Presentations%20and%20activity%20shee
ts/Earthquakes/Earthquakes%20presentation%20Teachers%20notes.p
df?la=en
https://www.science.org.au/curious/earth-environment/what-causes-
earthquake
https://spaceplace.nasa.gov/earthquakes/en/