What Causes Earthquakes?

via GIPHY

Earthquakes are caused by the movement of tectonic plates, which are large pieces of the Earth's crust that move slowly over time. When these plates collide or grind past each other, they can cause the Earth's surface to shake, resulting in an earthquake.

There are three main types of earthquake waves:

  1. Primary waves (P-waves): These are the fastest-moving waves and are the first to arrive at a seismograph station. P-waves are compressional waves, meaning they cause the ground to compress or push together.

  2. Secondary waves (S-waves): These waves are slower than P-waves and arrive after them. S-waves are transverse waves, meaning they cause the ground to move up and down or side to side.

  3. Surface waves: These are the slowest-moving waves and arrive last at a seismograph station. Surface waves cause the ground to move in an elliptical motion, and they are responsible for the most damage during an earthquake.

When an earthquake occurs, these waves radiate outward from the earthquake's epicenter, which is the point on the Earth's surface directly above the focus (or source) of the earthquake. The strength of an earthquake is measured using the Richter scale, which takes into account the magnitude of the earthquake and the intensity of the shaking at a particular location.

It's important to note that earthquakes can cause landslides, tsunamis, and other natural disasters, so it's important to be prepared and follow safety guidelines if you live in an earthquake-prone area.