Chapter 3: Earthquakes

Earthquakes are serious natural hazards that affect people across the globe,
sometimes at long distances from where the quakes occur. They are
especially dangerous because seismologists, the scientists who study
earthquakes, cannot predict them in time for evacuations or other
precautions. Your goals in this module should be to:

understand how scientists measure and compare earthquakes.

be familiar with processes that take place in an earthquake such as

faulting, tectonic creep, and seismic waves.

know which global regions are most at risk for earthquakes and shy
they are at risk.

know and understand the effects of earthquakes, including shaking,

ground rupture, and liquefaction, as well as how earthquakes are linked
to other natural hazards such as landslides, fires, and tsunamis.

know the important natural service functions of earthquakes.

know how human beings interact with and affect the earthquake
hazard.

understand how we can minimize seismic risk, and recognize

adjustments we can make to protect ourselves.

3.1 Earthquake Basics

Image copyright: United Nations Development Programme, licensed as Creative Commons Public
Domain.

An earthquake is a sudden motion or trembling in the earth caused by the

abrupt release of slowly accumulated energy. All earthquakes occur along
a fault, which is a fracture in the earth's crust where tectonic movement
occurs. Where the actual break occurred along the fault is called
the focus (also called the hypocenter) and the epicenter is the point on the
Earth's surface that lies directly above the focus and is where the strongest
shockwave is normally felt. Click here to watch a brief video on earthquakes.

Recall that all around the planet, tectonic plates are moving because of
convection in the mantle. Tectonic plates are also composed of two types of
crust, oceanic and continental. The oceanic crust, which is made mostly of
basalt is more dense than continental crust that is made of granite. When
these tectonic plates come in contact, the denser oceanic crust subducts
below the continental crust. Now sometimes when two tectonic plate come in

contact they become stuck. As the rocks begin to bend or strain under
tectonic forces, large amounts of energy - called strain - builds. When the
stress becomes too great for the rocks to hold, segments may suddenly
snap, releasing large amounts of energy. This is called theelastic rebound
theory.
Movement along a fault can occur vertically or horizontally. The greatest
horizontal displacement was 21 feet along the San Andreas Fault in the Great
San Francisco Quake of 1906. Imagine in an instant being moved 21 feet
horizontally! The greatest maximum vertical displacement used to be the
Alaskan earthquake in 1964. The vertical displacement was 33 feet! But on
December 26, 2004 a 9.1 underwater earthquake occurred in Indonesia. It
had a vertical displacement of 60 feet over 800 miles long! Imaging being
thrown 60 feet instantly and that it occurred for 800 miles. The compression
caused by the oceanic-oceanic convergence actually sped up the earth's
rotation 2.676 millionths of a second and shifted the axis 1 inch! It produced
a massive tsunami traveling 500 mph. Over 240,000 died from the
earthquake and tsunami; one in three were children. The image below if of
an earthquake in Pakistan that killed 80,000.
Editors Note/Document: The Indian Institute of Technology did an interesting study on
the social aspects of Earthquake disasters. It is short but it talks of how the social and
natural disasters go hand in hand. The article is found here:
http://www.iitk.ac.in/nicee/wcee/article/7_vol9_251.pdf

3.2 Types of Earthquakes

There are several types of faults that earthquakes occur on, which are
dependent on whether the fault is occurring because of convergent,
divergent, or transform tectonic plate forcing. Geologists use old mining
terms to distinguish between different types of faults. Think of a minor
walking down into the earth along a fault line. The ground the miner is
walking on is called the footwall. If the minor needs to hand their lantern, the
ceiling is called the hanging-wall.

Strike-slip faults (A) occur along transform boundaries where

tectonic plates are moving horizontal or parallel to each other.
Deformation of rivers, roads, fences, etc. can occur if they cross
over these fault lines. Examples of strike-slip faults are the San
Andreas Fault in the United States and the North Anatolian Fault
in Turkey.
Normal faults (B) are common along divergent plate boundaries. As
extensional forces occur, the footwall is forced upward, while the
hanging wall slides downward. This can create a series of valleys (called
a graben) and mountains (called a horst). Examples of mountain ranges
and valleys created by normal faulting are theGrand Tetons, the Basin
and Range in the western United States, and the Wasatch Front in Utah.
Reverse faults (C) are caused by compressional forces as tectonic plates
collide together forcing one plate to rise above another. Using the mining
terminology, movement along a reverse fault would cause the hangingwall to rise up and the footwall to drop lower. The angle of a reverse fault
is about 45 degrees, but if the angle of the fault is steeper than 45 degrees
it is called a thrust fault. When two plates collide, intense folding and
faulting can occur. Examples of where reverse and thrust faults occur are
where convergent boundaries are common such as: the Northern Rocky
Mountains, the Alps, Himalayas, and the Appalachian mountains.

Image copyright: United States Geo

Commons Pub

3.3 Measuring Seismic Activity

Editors Note/article: Even though earthquakes are almost impossible to

predict when they will occur scientist have been able to successfully forecast
locations and magnitudes of the earthquakes. Once the science catches up we
will soon be able to predict the when with ample time to be able to help save
many lives.
http://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/scientists-successfullyforecasted-the-size-and-location-of-an-earthquake-180948072/?no-ist
Seismologists record seismic waves using a seismograph. When a rupture occurs
within the earth, energy is released from the focus in all directions and the
seismograph will record the magnitude of the energy. There are three types of
seismic waves: P-waves, S-waves, and Surface waves.
Primary waves, also called P-waves, are compressional waves and are the first to
be felt by seismographs and individuals because they travel the fastest (about 3.7
miles per second). To visualize a P-wave, think of stretching a slinky and letting it
go. You would be able to actually see the compression occurring within the slinky.
The second type of seismic wave is called a secondary wave or S-wave. They reach
the seismograph second because they travel slower than P-waves and travel in a
side-to-side manner. Imaging pulling a slinky and shaking one end side to side. You
would be able to see the side-to-side movement travel up the slinky. P-waves and Swaves together are called body waves because they travel through the earth rather
than on the surface.
Surface waves are the last seismic waves to reach an area, create the greatest
ground motion, and are the most destructive because they are the slowest and move
in a rolling manner.

3.4 Locating Seismic Activity

Image copyright: United

Creative Co

Image copyright: United States Geologic Survey, licensed as Creative Commons Public Domain.

In order to determine the location of an earthquake, seismologists must

measure the interval distance of P-waves and S-waves released during the
rupture. P-waves travel faster than S-waves, thus scientists calculate the
time difference between both waves to determine a perimeter of the
epicenter. But the epicenter could be anywhere within that perimeter.
Therefore, scientists must use a minimum of three seismic readings from
different seismograph stations in order to determine the exact location of the
epicenter.

3.5 Classifying Earthquakes

Image copyright: Licensed as Creative Commons Public Domain.

There are two basic ways to measure the strength and destructive power of
an earthquake. The first is called the Richter scale. Based on a range from
1 (weakest) to 10 (strongest), the Richter scale measures the magnitude
(energy released) by an earthquake. The scale is logarithmic meaning that
every whole number increase in magnitude is 10 times more ground shaking
and 30 times more energy released. Example: a magnitude 7.0 earthquake
has ground shaking 10 times more than a 6.0 and 30 times more energy
released. A magnitude 8.0 earthquake has ground shaking 100 times more
than a 6.0 and 900 times more energy released. The December 26, 2004
Indonesian earthquake had a magnitude of 9.1. It should be noted that for
the strongest earthquakes, the Richter Scale is no longer used. Instead,
the Moment Magnitude Scaleis used, though it is very similar to the
Richter Scale. The Richter Scale and Moment Magnitude Scale
provide quantitative information of the energy released from an earthquake.
Editors Note/Video: When people below the poverty line and earthquakes
mix devastation occurs.

The Modified Mercalli Intensity Scale (shown below) is

more qualitative and focuses on the actual damage caused by the
earthquake and its impact on human lives and property. The scale
has 12 categories ranging from I (felt by very few people) to XII
(total destruction). Each category is based on a description of how
people felt or perceived the earthquake. The major problem with
the Modified Mercalli Intensity Scale is that ground damage is
relative to location. The scale can be influenced by the types of
rocks underneath, if the ground is mostly bedrock, loose sediment,
or even landfill, how well buildings are built, and how far away the
people and buildings are from the epicenter. The farther away from
the epicenter, the weaker the earthquake will feel. So the Modified
Mercalli Intensity Scale is great to determine ground damage and
how the earthquake affected people, but does not tell you how
much energy was actually released from the rupture. Because of
the access to the Internet, the United States Geologic Survey
(USGS) allows you to email them if you just felt and earthquake.
They take this information and create a map similar to the
Modified Mercalli maps, but call it a shake map. To view real-time
shake maps from the USGS, click here. For a list of recent
earthquakes in Utah along with shake maps, check out
the Seismology Departmentat the University of Utah.

Image copyright: United States Geologic Surv

Public Doma

One final note, with the recent popularity of smart phones and the iTouch,
there are several apps now available in relation to natural disasters. In terms
of earthquakes, a highly popular app in Apple's iTunes is called QuakeWatch.
There are probably similar apps for other smart phone devises.

3.6 Earthquake Hazards

Image copyright: United Nations Development Program, licensed as Creative Commons Public
Domain.

Earthquakes do not kill people; falling buildings and highways kill people.
History has taught us the importance of building codes to create safer
buildings. Many of the massive death tolls reported by earthquakes are
caused by poorly built buildings rather than the earthquake itself. In general,
buildings or structures built out of brick, stone, mud, or reinforced concrete
fair poorly in large earthquakes because there is very little flexibility in the
structures as the ground shakes. The best types of buildings to be in are
those built of wood because of there flexibility; the house may not be

habitable after the earthquake, but they won't crumble or collapse on

people. Buildings with weak floors or basement garages are also susceptible
to collapsing.
There are several techniques engineers have developed to help buildings
withstand the destructive power of earthquakes. Many buildings are being
built or retrofitted with diagonal braces that can withstand the ground
motions caused by an earthquake. Tall buildings also tend to sway at
different frequencies them to slam into each other during an earthquake. If
engineers know how much a building will sway, they can determine how far
apart buildings must be built. Finally, engineers are placing rubber pads at
the base of newly built and retrofitted buildings that act as shock absorbers.
Liquefaction can occur when earthquakes rupture in
regions with loose sediment and high water tables. As the
ground shakes, the high water table rises to the surface
which softens and destabilizes the surface causing
structures to break off their foundations or fall over.
Liquefaction has occurred in Mexico City in 1985, San
Francisco 1989, Anchorage, Alaska 1964, Kobe Japan in
1995 and will occur in Salt Lake City.

Image copyright: This work is in the public domain in that

between 1923 and 1977 and without a c

Click here to see a map of liquefaction potential and ground shaking within
Salt Lake County. (You can also look at maps for Tooele, Cache, Davis, Weber
and Utah Counties.) For those who live in the Salt Lake valley, notice how the
liquefaction potential is greatest along the Jordan River and near the Great
Salt Lake. Any ideas why? It has to do with the fact the water table is highest
near those areas. So when an earthquake occurs and the ground begins to
shake, the water will rise and destabilize the ground. In these maps, the reds
and purples represent the areas of greatest liquefaction potential from a
magnitude 7.0 earthquake.
Earthquakes can also destabilize steep slopes causing them to slip and fail.
These landslides tend to occur where the ground is mostly loose sandy soil
with a high water table. Fires are also another serious hazard created by
earthquakes as our infrastructure collapses and electrical and gas lines
break. The treat of fires will also increase as emergency crews have a hard
time maneuvering through the debris. There are two simple things
individuals can do to reduce their risk of a fire: first is to have a wrench

attached to their outside gas line. If you smell gas at your house, quickly turn
off the gas. But if you do not smell gas, do not turn it off; doing so may
prevent you from having heating in your house in the winter and it may be
months before it gets turned back on. Second, make sure your water heater
is attached to your house. A simple $20 bracket wrapped around your water
heater and bolted into your house may prevent it from falling over and
breaking its gas line.
Another interesting effect of powerful earthquakes is island creation. In
September 2013, a moderately powerful earthquake off the coast of Pakistan
created a 200 foot wide, 60 foot tall island. It won't last long because ocean
waves will erode it back down, but it's an interesting and rare effect of
earthquakes. Click here to learn more.

3.7 Human-Induced Earthquakes

Can humans create earthquakes? Maybe not intentionally, but the answer is
yes and here is why. If a water reservoir is built on top of an active fault line,
the water may actually lubricate the fault and weaken the stress built up
within it. This may either create a series of small earthquakes or potentially
create a large earthquake. Also the shear weight of the reservoir's water can
weaken the bedrock causing it to fracture. Then the obvious concern is if the
dam fails. Earthquakes can also be generated if humans inject other fluids
into a fault such as sewage or chemical waste. Finally, nuclear explosions can
trigger earthquakes. In fact, one way to determine if a nation has tested a
nuclear bomb is by monitoring the earthquakes and energy released by the
explosion.

3.8 Earthquake Prepardeness

Everywhere in the world has disasters, so nowhere is safe. But everyone
should be prepared for the type of disasters their region experiences.
Everyone should have a 72 hour kit prepared in your car and house. Recently
the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) stated that citizens
should prepare a 5-day kit in case federal, state, and local agencies can not
reach you. Learn more how you can prepare at Ready.gov. Here are a few
more items you should think about with disaster preparedness.

Each member in your family should also know where to meet in case of
a disaster.

The number one reason why people end up in the hospital after an
earthquake is glass in their feet. Having a pair of old shoes under your
bed can greatly reduce that probability.

Know how to shut off your gas line if you smell gas in your house. If it
requires a wrench to shut off, always have one next to the line for
quick shutoff. You will know if you have a gas leak because the gas
companies place a chemical in the gas that will smell like rotten eggs.

Also make sure your water heater is attached to your house. If your
water heater falls over and the gas line breaks, your house can catch
fire.

If you and your family are safe, take care of others in need.

Finally for those interested, look into getting CERT certified as a first
responder.

Editors Note/ Checklist: Being prepared is really the biggest thing that you can do for
you and your family to help mitigate the disaster that can be potentially devastating.

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