Earthquakes & Faults
Earthquake – a shaking or trembling of the Earth that
is volcanic or tectonic (changes in the structure of the
Earth’s surface) in origin; travels in the form of seismic
waves
Tremor – felt or unfelt movements of Earth’s crust
Geologists – study the Earth’s history & life as recorded
in rocks
Seismologists – experts in the study of earthquakes
PHIVOLCS (Phil. Institute of Volcanology & Seismology)
– LGU that is responsible for giving us information on
what to do before, during & after an earthquake
Fault – is a break/crack in the Earth’s crust along
which significant movement has taken place
Types:
1. Normal (Dip-slip) – caused by tension; block above
an inclined fault moves down
Graben – multiple normal faults
2. Reverse/thrust (Dip-slip) – caused by compression;
block above an inclined fault moves up
Horst – multiple reverse fault
3. Strike-slip – blocks on either side of fault move
horizontally, left or right
Active fault – has generated earthquakes before &
capable of causing more in the future
Fold – a bend produced in rock by forces operative after
the consolidation of rocks
Anticline – up way fold
Syncline – down way fold
Seismic waves – vibrations caused by an earthquake;
travel in all directions from the focus
Seismograph – instrument for detecting & measuring
an earthquake
Seismogram – is the printed record from a
seismograph
Magnitude – measures the amount & duration
movements of energy released by an earthquake
Intensity – measures the amount of damage caused at
a certain location caused by an earthquake
Forms of Seismic Wave:
A. Body waves – faster waves that travel through
Earth’s interior
1. Primary/P-waves – are the first to arrive at a
seismograph station
2. Secondary/S waves – arrive at recording station
after P waves but before surface waves
B. Surface waves – Slower waves that travel along
Earth’s surface; responsible for much of earthquake
damage
1. Rayleigh waves – result in vertical movement of
surface
2. Love waves – produce a side-to-side movement
Focus – the point under the Earth’s surface where the
initial slipping or sliding of rocks takes place
Epicenter – place on the surface of the Earth just above
the focus