Earthquakes

Front

What is a fault?

Back

a fracture in Earth where movement has occurred

Front

What is an earthquake’s epicenter?

Back

the place on the surface directly above the focus

Front

Most earthquakes are produced by the rapid release of which kind of energy stored in rock subjected to great forces?

Back

elastic

Front

A seismogram shows that P waves travel

Back

faster than S waves.

Front

Which of the following is NOT a characteristic of S waves?

Back

They are also called longitudinal waves

Front

A travel-time graph can be used to find the

Back

epicenter of an earthquake.

Front

Where do most earthquakes occur?

Back

around the edge of the Pacific Ocean

Front

An earthquake’s magnitude is a measure of the

Back

size of seismic waves it produces.

Front

What measurement for earthquake do scientists use most often today?

Back

moment magnitude scale

Front

The moment magnitude is calculated using all of the following factors EXCEPT for the:

• surface area of a fault
• magnitude of past earthquakes in the area
• average displacement along a fault
• rigidity of rock in the area

Back

magnitude of past earthquakes in the area