Earthquakes occur when built-up stress causes rocks beneath the earth's surface to suddenly break along faults. Rocks experience stress as the tectonic plates they reside in slowly move and push against each other over long periods of time. This stress eventually exceeds the rocks' elastic limit, resulting in an earthquake as the rocks snap back to their original positions. The three major types of faults that cause earthquakes are normal faults formed by tension between plates, reverse faults caused by compression, and strike-slip faults driven by horizontal shearing movements between plates.

1. Earthquakes
And Seismic Waves

2. Earthquakes and Plate Boundaries
• Seismic Eruption Simulation

4. Earthquakes
• An earthquake is the shaking and trembling that results
from movement of rock beneath Earth’s surface.
• Earthquakes produce vibrations when rock snaps and
breaks.
• Plate movement produces stress in Earth’s crust.
• This stress builds up until the rock breaks.
Objects can only withstand
so much force:
- A stick will snap when
bent too far.
- A rubber band will break
if pulled too tight.
• An elastic limit is the maximum force an object can
withstand before breaking.

5. Earthquakes
1. Rocks have an elastic limit.
2. Rocks will actually bend until they reach their elastic limit.
3. When rocks bend too far, they will then break.
4. The break or crack in the rock of Earth’s crust is called a fault.
PLACE ELASTIC REBOUNDANIMATION HERE!

6. How do Earthquakes form?
Faults form when Earth’s plates move and place stress on one
another, eventually forcing the crust to snap.
Earthquakes occur when rocks move past each other along a fault.

7. How do Earthquakes form?
• Rocks have jagged edges.
• The jagged edges along a fault get stuck.
• Stress builds up in the stuck rock as the plates try to
move.
• The rocks bend until they reach their elastic limit and
break.
• The rocks snap back to their original position (elastic
rebound).
• The breaking of the rock creates an earthquake.

8. Stress - Faults - Boundaries

9. Foot Wall vs. Hanging Wall
Foot Wall:
- The block of rock below the fault
line.
- Imagine being able to walk on it
as if it were the floor below you.
Hanging Wall:
- The block of rock above the
fault line.
- Imagine being able to hang
something from it as if it were a
ceiling.

10. Normal Faults
• Type of Force: Tension
• Caused by forces of tension
(stretching).
• Tension forces pull rock
apart.
• Tension causes the hanging
wall to move down.

11. Three Major Types of Faults

12. Reverse Faults
• Type of Force: Compression
• Caused by forces of
compression (pushing)
• Compression forces squeeze
rock together.
• Compression causes the
hanging wall to move up.

13. Three Major Types of Faults

14. Strike/Slip Fault
• Type of Force: Shearing
• Caused by forces of shearing
(sliding).
• Shearing forces move rock in
opposite directions.
• The movement is only in a
horizontal direction.

15. Three Major Types of Faults