Earthquakes occur both on land and sea.They may occur at areas where plates collide (subduction zones/ convergent plate margins) ; where plates slide past eachother along fault lines (transform plate margins) or due to volcanic eruption. Earthquakes may be of three different categories: * Tectonic – movement in the earth’s crust due to sudden movement along fault lines. * Plutonic - occurs deep within the subduction zone of colliding plates. * Volcanic – earthquakes accompanied by molten lava
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to various customers around the globe in remote places to save on costs of piping these reserves and also for surveillance purposes like detecting missiles. Japan is situated in a complicated plate boundary region where three subduction zones meet. Two of these subduction zones run parallel to the east coast of Japan. To the south‚ the Philippine plate is being subducted beneath the Eurasian plate‚ whilst to the north; the Pacific Plate is being subducted beneath the North American plate. These
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the eastern edge of the Eurasian Plate. The Pacific Plate‚ which is an oceanic plate‚ subducts the Eurasian plate‚ which is a continental plate‚ to the east of Japan. This type of plate margin is known as a destructive plate margin. The process of subduction is not smooth. Friction causes the Pacific Plate to stick. Pressure builds and is released as an earthquake. So what? The earthquake occurred at a relatively shallow depth at 20miles below the surface of the Pacific Ocean. This‚ combined with
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plates move within the lithosphere‚ which is the outermost shell of the planet. The lithosphere has more strength than the underlying asthenosphere allowing the tectonic plates to move. Seafloor motion away from the spreading ridge and drag at the subduction zones is a theory for plate movement. The tidal forces of the sun and moon and the forces generated by the rotation of the globe is another idea for plate movement. There are other hypotheses on plate movement but these are the two main scientific
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Continental Drift and Plate Tectonics Theory (Part 1a) Introduction: The Beginning of the “Continental Drift Theory” In the middle of the eighteenth century‚ James Hutton proposed a theory‚ uniformitarianism; “the present is the key to the past”. It held that processes such as geologic forces- gradual and catastrophic-occurring in the present were the same that operated in the past. (Matt Rosenberg‚ 2004) This theory coincides with the theory of Continental Drift that was first proposed by Abraham
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CONVERGENT BOUNDARIES Figure 3: Movement of Convergent Boundaries Convergent boundaries occur when two plates move towards each other‚ resulting in one plate moving underneath the other plate‚ creating a subduction zone (Kerey‚ 2007). Whether or not a plate will be subducted depends on its density. As of today‚ it’s generally accepted that oceanic crust is denser than continental crust. The subducted plate is then eventually melted and destroyed by the immensely
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At 2:46 p.m. one of the deadliest earthquakes shook Japan on March 11th 2011. A 500 kilometre-long fault zone was ruptured off the northeast coast of Japan. The epicentre was situated 130 kilometres east from the big city‚ Sendai. The focus occurred at a relatively shallow depth (about 30 km) underneath the Pacific Ocean. The earthquake had the largest magnitude of 9.0‚ which Japan had ever recorded and can only be explained by plate tectonics. As seen in figure 3‚ the earthquake occurred
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The Earth’s structure The crust is the surface of the earth; it is a rock layer forming the upper part of the lithosphere. The lithosphere is split into tectonic plates. The plates move slowly on a layer called the asthenosphere. Meteorites can tell us what the earth is like-these are rock and metal fragments which fall to earth from space. We know the earth’s core is hot through hot spring geezers and volcano lava. 2 types of crust OCEANIC CRUST: it is found under the oceans; it’s thin and
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How tsunamis occur. As one plate subducts below another (moves underneath)‚ pressure builds for many years resulting in a section of the mega-thrust giving away. As this section gives away‚ it ruptures the ocean floor‚ resulting in a massive displacement of water‚ causing a tsunami. Tsunamis are barely felt as a ripple on the ocean’s surface‚ but as the waves reach land‚ they increase in size as the water becomes shallower. Japan earthquake and tsunami At 2:46pm Japanese time‚ on March 11th
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‘The hazards presented by volcanic and seismic events have the greatest impact on the world’s poorest people’ to what extent do you agree with this view? (40 marks) Volcanic and sesmin events and activities can take place all over the world and therefore both more economically developed countries (MEDCs) and less economically develop countries (LEDCs) can be affected. In the last 30 years there have been masses of examples of where volcanic and seismis event have had an impact on both MEDCs and
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