Earthquake

More about Earthquake Data at NGDC

Behavior of Columns during Earthquakes
	Column failure is a primary cause of structure collapse in earthquakes. This set illustrates a variety of types of column failure, including: inadequate beam-to-column and slab-to-column connection, over stressed columns, and columns of unequal length.

Chi-Chi, Taiwan Earthquake, September 21, 1999

At 1:47 AM local time, a magnitude MW 7.6 earthquake was felt throughout the island of Taiwan. A five county area, including the city of Taichung, experienced the greatest number of casualties and most severe damage. 2,405 deaths and 10,718 injuries were reported. As many as 82,000 housing units were damaged or destroyed, resulting in nearly 600,000 people being temporarily or permanently displaced from their homes.

Earthquake Damage - General
	This set provides an overview and summary of effects caused by eleven earthquakes in eight countries. The images depict surface faulting, landslides, soil liquefaction, and structural damage.

Earthquake Damage in Mexico City, Mexico, September 19, 1985
	Pictures of different types of damaged buildings and the major kinds of structural failure that occurred in Mexico City, at a 350 km distance from the epicenter of a magnitude 8.1 earthquake. Effect of subsoils on earthshaking and building damage, is emphasized.

Earthquake Damage in San Francisco, California, April 18, 1906
	The 1906 San Francisco magnitude 8.3 earthquake was the largest 20th century event to occur in the conterminous United States. This set includes a panoramic view of San Francisco in flames a few hours after the earthquake, damage scenes from the area, and other historic photographs. B&W

Earthquake Damage to Schools
	The set graphically illustrates the potential danger that major earthquakes pose to school structures and occupants. It includes pictures from 1886 to 1988 of nine destructive earthquakes in the U.S. and eight earthquakes that occurred in foreign countries. B&W/Color

Earthquake Damage to Transportation Systems
	A serious result of large-magnitude earthquakes is the disruption of transportation systems, inhibiting emergency response. These slides depict damage to transportation systems sorted by cause such as ground failure, faulting, vibration damage, and tsunamis. B&W/Color

Earthquake Damage, Armenian SSR, December 7, 1988
	This magnitude 6.9 earthquake in northwestern Armenia was followed minutes later by a magnitude 5.8 aftershock. These photographs show damage in and around the devastated cities of Spitak and Leninakan.

Earthquake Damage, Northern Iran, June 21,1990
	This unusually destructive magnitude 7.7 earthquake appeared to be multiple earthquakes occurring in rapid succession. This set depicts damage resulting from intensive ground motion and soil liquefaction, acting on unreinforced masonry, steel structures, and concrete buildings.

Earthquake Intensity Database
	The Earthquake Intensity Database contains damage and felt reports for over 22,000 U.S. earthquakes from 1638 to 1985.

Earthquake Strong Motion, 1996
	Collection of over 15,000 digitized and processed accelerograph records from 1933 to 1994.

Earthquakes in Central California, 1980-1984
	Slides showing earthquake damage from the following central California events: Livermore, 1980, Coalinga, 1983, and Morgan Hill, 1984. All of these earthquakes were greater than magnitude 5.8 or caused estimated damage in excess of 8 million dollars.

Earthquakes in Southern California
	These slides show damage from the following Southern California earthquakes: Imperial Valley, 1979, Westmorland, 1981, Palm Springs, 1986, and Whittier, 1987. All of these earthquakes were greater than magnitude 5.9 or caused estimated damage in excess of one million dollars.

El Quindio, Colombia Earthquake, January 25, 1999
	The El Quindio earthquake was one of the most destructive in Colombia in recent years because of three factors: the presence of faults, infill walls, and "soft" soils. This set depicts damage from the January event.

Environmental Hazards and Mud Volcanoes in Romania
	Romanian researchers have a long tradition of studying the natural hazards, which disrupt their society. These slides show examples of landslides, rockfalls, sheet erosion, and mudflows.

Erosional Landforms
	Dramatic views of erosional landforms sculpted by rivers, glaciers, and waves. Many of the locales include U.S. National Parks and Monuments.

Faults
	Faults reveal information about crustal movements and earthquake size and recurrence intervals. This set describes fault types and mechanisms and their effects on natural and manmade features.

Geological Hazard Photos, 1997
	Collection of photographs of damage from natural hazards in TIF, GIF, and JPG formats. Earthquakes, volcanoes, tsunamis, landslides and other geologic hazards are represented.

Great Alaska Earthquake, Prince William Sound, March 28, 1964
	The Prince William Sound magnitude 8.4 earthquake was one of the largest ever on the North American Continent. These slides show geological changes, the effects of four major landslides triggered by the event, tsunami damage, and other damage to structures, transportation systems, and utilities.

Great Hanshin-Awaji (Kobe) Earthquake, January 17, 1995
	The worst damage from this 6.9 magnitude earthquake occurred along a previously undetected fault, where many businesses and residences were located. This set shows damage in the downtown region and along the waterfront.

Izmit (Kocaeli) Turkey Earthquake, August 17, 1999: Coastal Effects
	At 3:02 a.m. local time, a magnitude 7.4 earthquake occurred near the Izmit Bay, Marmara Sea, Turkey. The images show slope failure, subsidence, slumping, and liquefaction. The resulting tsunami wreaked havoc on waterfront properties.

Izmit (Kocaeli) Turkey Earthquake, August 17, 1999: Structural Damage
	The earthquake damaged buildings across seven provinces for a distance of 250 km. Casualties totaled 17,000 and additional thousands were missing and presumed dead. Injuries numbered 23,984 and an estimated 500,000 people were left homeless with 200,000 living on the streets. Damage estimates range from $10 billion to $40 billion.

Landers and Big Bear, California Earthquakes, June 28, 1992
	The magnitude 7.6 earthquake near Landers, California was closely followed by a magnitude 6.7 near Big Bear. The two quakes were separated by 3 hours in time, 17 miles in distance, and 7,000 feet in elevation. This set depicts the terrain differences, structural damage, liquefaction, faulting, and resultant landslides.

Landslides, Set 1
	The slopes above streams and rivers are subjected to processes that cause them to recede from the channel. These processes, collectively called mass wasting, are classified according to speed of movement and type of materials transported. This set depicts diverse types of mass wasting.

Loma Prieta Earthquake, Part 1
	On October 17, 1989, a 7.1 magnitude earthquake occurred near Loma Prieta in the Santa Cruz Mountains. This set depicts earth cracks and structural damage in the more rural areas affected by the quake including Boulder Creek, Aptos, Los Gatos, San Jose, Scott's Valley, and Watsonville.

Loma Prieta Earthquake, Part 2
	This set focuses on the effects of the earthquake (also known as the "San Francisco World Series Earthquake") in San Francisco and Oakland. It highlights the damage in the Marina District of San Francisco, Market Street, the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge, and the Nimitz Freeway.

Northridge, California Earthquake, January 17, 1994, Set 1
	On January 17, 1994, a magnitude 6.8 earthquake near downtown Los Angeles caused extensive damage in the San Fernando and Simi Valleys, and in the northern part of the Los Angeles Basin. This set shows damage to structures in Northridge.

Northridge, California Earthquake, January 17, 1994, Set 2
	The January 1994 magnitude 6.8 earthquake near Los Angeles took 57 lives and caused $10 billion in property damage. This set includes damaged structures in communities including Sylmar, Fillmore, Granada Hills, Reseda, Van Nuys, Sherman Oaks, Chatsworth, Santa Monica, and Los Angeles.

San Fernando Valley California Earthquakes
	This set compares damage from the San Fernando (1971) and Northridge (1994) earthquakes. These two events, separated by 10 miles and 23 years, disproved the notion that once an earthquake has occurred, an area is safe from future earthquakes.

Seismic Creep
	Seismic creep is the constant or periodic movement on a fault as contrasted with the sudden rupture associated with an earthquake. This set contains examples of creep from Hollister and Hayward, California. Several of the slides are split images of a location, comparing fault movement over the years.

Seismicity Catalog, 1996
	Parameters from over 4 million earthquakes from 2100 B.C. to 1995 A.D. and more than 200 seismicity catalogs with related seismicity data.

Shikotan, Kuril Islands Earthquake & Tsunami, October 4, 1994, Set 1
	This set shows damage from the magnitude 8.1 earthquake in the southern Kurils. Images include a newly-created landslide formation, ground cracks, structural damage, and effects of tsunami runup on Shikotan Island. A scientific overview of this event, written by a member of the international study team, is included.

Shikotan, Kuril Islands Earthquake & Tsunami, October 4, 1994, Set 2
	This second set depicts much of the tsunami damage that occurred at Kuzhno-Kurilsk and Kunsashir Island. Tsunami heights ranged from 2.5-3.0 m. In the older part of town (fronted by a gentle beach) all houses were damaged by the wave that penetrated 200-500 m inland.

Significant Earthquake Database
	The Significant Earthquake Database contains information on more than 5,000 destructive earthquakes from 2150 B.C. to the present that meet at least one of the following criteria: Moderate damage (approximately $1 million or more), 10 or more deaths, Magnitude 7.5 or greater, Modified Mercalli Intensity X or greater, or the earthquake generated a tsunami.

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