Earthquakes and Earth’s Interior - The Changing Earth: Exploring Geology and Evolution - page 188

OUTLINE
Introduction
Elastic Rebound Theory
Seismology
Where Do Earthquakes Occur, and How Often?
Seismic Waves
Locating an Earthquake
Measuring the Strength of an Earthquake
What Are the Destructive Effects of Earthquakes?
GEO-INSIGHT: The San Andreas Fault
Earthquake Prediction
Earthquake Control
What Is Earth's Interior Like?
GEO-FOCUS: Paleoseismology
The Core
Earth's Mantle
Seismic Tomography
Earth's Internal Heat
Earth's Crust
Geo-Recap

OBJECTIVES
At the end of this chapter, you will have learned that
Energy is stored in rocks and is released when they fracture,
thus producing various types of waves that travel outward in
all directions from their source.
Most earthquakes take place in well-defi ned zones at trans-
form, divergent, and convergent plate boundaries.
An earthquake's epicenter is found by analyzing earthquake
waves at no fewer than three seismic stations.

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The San Andreas fault, as seen in this aerial view where it crosses the Carrizo
Plain in central California, is famous for generating large and destructive
earthquakes. Movement along this fault caused the famous 1906 San
Francisco earthquake. Along with associated faults, the San Andreas has
also been responsible for many other devastating earthquakes.

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