Earthquakes Presentation Geo Elin and Team

Earthquakes
Causes, Effects & Measures
~ By Elin & Team

What are Earthquakes
What Are Earthquakes
● Earthquake is defined as The vibrations or shaking of a part of the Earth’s
surface caused by sudden movements under its crust are known as earthquakes.
● The point of origin of an earthquake is called the focus.
● The point on the Earth’s crust which is directly above the focus is called the epicentre
The strongest impact of the earthquake is experienced in the epicentre.
An image showing an Earthquake and
the focus and epicentre.
Cause Of An
Earthquake
Cause Of An Earthquake
● Earthquakes are mainly caused due to the movement of tectonic
plates and molten rocks beneath the Earth’s crust.
● Sometimes even Volcanic Eruptions can cause Earthquakes .

What are Tectonic Plates
A tectonic plate (also called lithospheric plate) is a massive, irregularly shaped slab of solid rock, generally
composed of both continental and oceanic lithosphere. Plate size can vary greatly, from a few hundred to
thousands of kilometers across; the Pacific and Antarctic Plates are among the largest. Plate thickness also
varies greatly, ranging from less than 15 km for young oceanic lithosphere to about 200 km or more for ancient
continental lithosphere (for example, the interior parts of North and South America).
How do these massive slabs of solid rock float despite their tremendous weight? The answer lies in the
composition of the rocks. Continental crust is composed of granitic rocks which are made up of relatively
lightweight minerals such as quartz and feldspar. By contrast, oceanic crust is composed of basaltic rocks,
which are much denser and heavier. The variations in plate thickness are nature's way of partly compensating
for the imbalance in the weight and density of the two types of crust. Because continental rocks are much
lighter, the crust under the continents is much thicker (as much as 100 km) whereas the crust under the oceans
is generally only about 5 km thick. Like icebergs, only the tips of which are visible above water, continents
have deep "roots" to support their elevations.
A map of the Tectonic Plates
Types Of Tectonic plate Movement
There are mainly 4 types of Tectonic plate movement:
1. Divergent Boundaries : This movement is the plates pulling away from each other.
The area between the plates is known as the rift zone. The thing that is common in
rift zones is high volcanic activity.Ex - Horn of Africa
2. Convergent Boundaries: This boundaries happen in places where two plates meet.
This means they are characterized by two plates moving towards each other.
Whenever this happens, one of the plates starts to move underneath the other one.
The crust which is heavier is usually the one that moves underneath the lighter crust
3. Transform fault boundaries : This type of movement occurs when two plates slide past
each other. This movement creates a transform fault or a boundary. These boundaries
mostly happen on the ocean floor, although some are known to appear on land.
The last type of movement between tectonic plates is hard to place into a specific group.
These boundaries do not fall into any of the previous categories, so we call them plate
boundary zones. No deformation happens during this movement, meaning there are no
interactions between plates. These areas are defined by the appearance of smaller
fragments of plates called microplates. Their geological structures are extremely
complicated.
Effects
Effects
● Earthquakes can cause destruction in mass scale.
● Due to Earthquakes, buildings and structures get damaged and collapse, in which
people die when they get stuck in the ruins.
● Roads in disruption of transportation.
● Electricity poles break and wires get dislocated.
● Earthquakes cause tsunamis and floods.
● Landslides occur in the mountainous regions due to the vibration of the earth.
Measures
Measures
Earthquakes occur suddenly and hence people should know how to handle such situations.
Certain precautionary measures can be adopted such as:
1. Earthquakes – resistant buildings should be constructed in high-risk areas.
2. People should move to open areas.
3. People who are indoors should move under heavy furniture such as beds and tables.
They should keep away from things that can collapse and cause injury such as
windows, mirrors, cup boards and fans.
4. Mock drills should be conducted in schools, colleges and residential complexes to
spread awareness about the precautionary measures.
Bibliography
https://www.bing.com/images/
create
https://image1.slideserve.com/
1709206/earthquake-focus-and
-epicenter-l.jpg
http://cdn.thinglink.me/api/ima
ge/440784919577231360/1024
/10/scaletowidth/0/0/1/1/false/t
rue?wait=true

Earthquakes Presentation Geo Elin and Team

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Earthquakes Presentation Geo Elin and Team

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Description:

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Earthquakes Presentation Geo Elin and Team

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Earthquakes

Causes, Effects & Measures

~ By Elin & Team

● Sometimes even Volcanic Eruptions can cause Earthquakes .

● Roads in disruption of transportation.

● Electricity poles break and wires get dislocated.

● Earthquakes cause tsunamis and floods.

You might also like