EARTHQUAKES
Crust
Mantle
Outer core NATURAL
Inner core HAZARDS
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 hazards.
Can anyone explain what a
natural hazard is?
• 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.
Why are earthquakes called
natural hazards?
• Earthquakes are natural hazards
because the shaking of the Earth’s
surface can cause city buildings to
collapse and injuring and sometimes
killing thousands of people.
Plate boundaries
Plates
Eurasian Caribbean plate Nazca plate Antarctic plate
plate Indian plate
North American South American Australian Arabian
Pacific plate plate plate African plate plate plate
2 5
10
9
6
1 7
3 8
4
11
Eurasian Caribbean plate Nazca plate Antarctic plate
plate Indian plate
North American South American Australian Arabian
Pacific plate plate plate African plate plate plate
Eurasian
North American plate
plate
Arabian
plate
Caribbean plate
Indian plate
Pacific plate
African plate
Nazca plate
South American Australian
plate plate
Antarctic plate
Lots of
friction!
Stress
Epicentre
Focus
Earthquake
Surface
Waves
Earthquake
P Waves
Earthquake
S Waves
Old fashioned
seismograph
Modern
seismograph
Surface waves
arrive last
P waves S waves
arrive first arrive next
P - S wave
time interval
P S
P S
1
2
P S
3
Computer controlled
Cross bracing – allows weights on roof
building to twist
Open areas for
Fire resistant building evacuation
materials
Automatic Foundations
shutters sunk into solid
rock
Road – quick access
for emergency Rubber shock
services absorbers
In teams build an earthquake resistant structure that is
at least 30cm tall and has a minimum of three floors.
Each floor must support one weight.
Tips to make your structure
more earthquake proof: Masking tape
• Wide base
• Solid foundation
• Symmetrical design Lollipop sticks
Card
• Think about additional
supports
• Think about where you
might put additional weight
Tsunami
Earthquake at reaches coast
sea
Beware this
can be messy!
Sand
Water
Plastic box Plastic board
Cardboard
or Lego
Village
Tsunami
Island
Ocean
Location Tohoku, Japan
Date 11 March 2011, 14:46
Magnitude 9
Fatalities 15,894
Epicentre
Injuries 6,156
Cost $235 billion
Fukushima
Nuclear
Power Station
Tokyo
Damage to a primary school gymnasium in
Nakano, Japan
Fukishima nuclear power station
Flooding in Sendai Airport from the tsunami
© www.fukishimawatch.com
Location Gorkha, Nepal
Date 25 April 2015, 11:56
Magnitude 7.8
Fatalities 8,964
Injuries 21,592
Cost $2.5 - 10 billion
Chi
na
Epicentre
Mount Everest
Ind
ia
Kathmandu
Collapsed buildings in Chautara, Nepal
Earthquake destruction in Bhaktapur, Nepal
What is an earthquake?
Shaking and vibration of the Earth's surface
due to movement of the Earth's plates.
Eruption of molten rock from below the
Earth’s surface
A huge wave that travels across the ocean
What is released during an earthquake?
Gas
Lava
Seismic waves
Water
Where do most earthquakes occur?
In the middle of plates
At plate boundaries
In the UK
The point where an earthquake happens is
called the …
Epicentre
Focus
Inner core
Aftershock
What does a seismograph measure?
Damage caused by
an earthquake
The height of a
tsunami
The vibrations from
an earthquake
Which type of earthquake wave arrives first?
S wave P wave Surface wave
Which type of earthquake wave arrives last?
S wave P wave Surface wave
When might a tsunami occur?
When an earthquake
happens under the sea
When an earthquake occurs
in the middle of a continent
When the moon is
closest to the Earth
Which of these methods does not help protect
coastal regions and people from tsunamis?
Planting more trees along the coast
Constructing buildings on stilts
Ignoring tsunami warnings
Educating the public about tsunamis
Why did the Fukishima nuclear power station
shut down in 2011?
The shaking from the
earthquake caused the
power station to collapse
The tsunami flooded the
power station and shut
off the power
