Where and how do earthquakes form?

1 ANSWERS

1. Guest8120
   

   The Earth's crust is made up of several pieces called tectonic plates. They fit together a bit like a jigsaw puzzle; but they are separate and they do move. Their movements are dependent on the forces exerted from below, by the viscosity of the mantle of the Earth. These same floating movements of the plates are, can we say, irregular and sometimes come into conflict, one plate moving against another. When this happens, there is a building up of tremendous pressure, until one plate gives way by sliding beneath the opposing one (called subduction) forcing it in an upward direction. If the plates are below land we suffer an earthquake. If these plates are below the ocean, the sudden release of upward pressure causes a massive tidal wave we call a Tsunami. When the earth's plates shift underground they begin to vibrate which makes certain areas shake. When a sudden break or shift occurs in the earth's crust, the energy radiates out as seismic waves.

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