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What causes earthquakes? Earthquakes occur when the plates that make up the Earth's crust move around. These plates, called tectonic plates, can push against each other.
Here are some earthquake basics, ... Here are some earthquake basics, like what earthquake magnitudes mean and how much damage each can cause.
Earthquakes result in various effects, such as ground shaking and soil liquefaction, leading to significant damage and loss of life. When the epicenter of a large earthquake is located offshore, the seabed may be displaced sufficiently to cause a tsunami. Earthquakes can trigger landslides.
Earthquakes in the New Madrid and Wabash Valley seismic zones from 1974 to 2002, with magnitudes larger than 2.5. The zone had four of the largest earthquakes in recorded North American history, with moment magnitudes estimated to be as large as 7 or greater, all occurring within a 3-month period between December 1811 and February 1812. Many of ...
2019 Ridgecrest earthquakes: California, Nevada, Arizona: Three earthquakes struck California between July 4 and July 5. The main earthquake was a 7.1 magnitude, as two others were 5.4 and 6.4 magnitudes. At least one was killed and several others were injured. The main earthquake was the strongest earthquake to hit the region in 20 years. [28 ...
About 55 earthquakes a day – 20,000 a year – are recorded by the National Earthquake Information Center. ... But some are strong enough to shake things off walls, cause cracks in foundations ...
Megathrust earthquakes occur at convergent plate boundaries, where one tectonic plate is forced underneath another. The earthquakes are caused by slip along the thrust fault that forms the contact between the two plates. These interplate earthquakes are the planet's most powerful, with moment magnitudes (M w) that can exceed 9.0.
2006 Kuril Islands earthquake and tsunami – magnitude 8.3 earthquake, no injuries or fatalities anywhere; 2009 Samoa earthquake and tsunami – magnitude 8.0 earthquake with an epicenter 120 miles (190 km) southwest of American Samoa generated tsunami waves up to 16 feet (5 m), killing 34 people in American Samoa and causing extensive damage [39]