Hello and welcome to CoreFacts, where we're always short on
time and big on science. I'm Steve Sobieszczyk. Today we're looking at some
introductory geology with:
What is an earthquake and what causes them to happen?
One of the most frightening and destructive phenomena of
nature is a severe earthquake and its terrible aftereffects. An earthquake is caused
by a sudden slip on a fault, often abruptly releasing strain that has
accumulated over a long period. For hundreds of millions of years, the forces
of plate tectonics have shaped the Earth as the huge plates that form the
Earth's surface slowly move over, under, and past each other. The tectonic
plates are always moving, but they get stuck at their edges due to friction.
When the stress on the edge overcomes the friction, there is an earthquake that
releases energy in waves that travel through the earth's crust and cause the
shaking that we feel. If the earthquake occurs in a populated area, it may
cause many deaths and injuries and extensive property damage.
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