Earthquakes

An earthquake can sometimes happen along a section of a fault line. Where does the first motion of the earthquake take place?

• focus

• center

• epicenter

• boundary

The energy released by an earthquake is the result of elastic rebound. How does elastic rebound take place?

• Pressure builds on rocks until they suddenly collapse.

• Rocks that are stretched or compressed suddenly return to their previous shape.

• Rocks gain energy from the constant pull of gravity and move when obstructions are removed.

• Rocks begin to melt due to the heat of the mantle and suddenly crystallize when pressure is removed

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NGSS.MS-ESS3-2

NGSS.MS-PS3-5

How does energy travel through Earth’s crust after an earthquake?

• sound waves

• seismic waves

• gravitational waves

• electromagnetic waves

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NGSS.MS-PS3-1

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What causes an earthquake to occur?

• Surface rocks move suddenly as a result of physical stress.

• Rocks along an underground fault move suddenly and release energy.

• Large amounts of rock suddenly shift downward when large holes form under them.

• Energy is transferred to rock layers from convection currents in the oceans and the atmosphere

Tags

NGSS.MS-ESS3-2

How does distance from the epicenter of an earthquake change its effects?

• The strongest effects are at the epicenter.

• The strongest effects are felt in a line extending north and south from the epicenter

• The strongest effects are felt furthest from the epicenter.

  d.

• The strongest effects are in a ring surrounding the epicenter with a radius of several miles.

Which type of stress causes deformation that leads to earthquakes at converging plate boundaries?

• tension

• stretching

• shear stress

• compression

The map shows the North American plate boundaries.

Which statement BEST explains why the risk of earthquakes is very high along the California coast, but very low along the Florida coast?

• Earthquakes move from west to east due to Earth’s rotation, so they do not reach the east coast if the continent.

• The North American plate is moving toward the west, so there is much more stress at the western boundary.

• The mountains near the west coast reflect the energy of earthquakes, but the mountains in the east are smaller and do not.

• There is a plate boundary beneath the west coast of the continent, but the plate extends beyond the coast on the eastern side of the continent.

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NGSS.MS-ESS3-2

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The map below illustrates the tsunami that took place on December 26, 2004. The light color indicates countries affected by the tsunami Based on the information on the map, which country had the greatest earthquake damage?

• India

• Somalia

• Indonesia

• Bangladesh

During the year 2003, a greater number of earthquakes took place than is usually recorded per year. The map shows the locations of some major earthquakes of 2003.

What is the most likely reason that there were no major earthquakes recorded in the interior of the continent of Africa?

• The plate boundary inside Africa is too small to form earthquakes.

• The landmass of Africa is too great to be affected by earthquakes

• There are no faults in Africa

• The entire continent of Africa is located on a single continental tectonic plate.

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NGSS.MS-ESS2-3

Why do the dots on the map tend to form a long curving line in the western part of the Pacific Ocean?

• This part of the ocean has a high rate of hurricanes and typhoons.

• That part of the ocean is directly above the boundaries between tectonic plates.

• An increase in the number of tsunamis in the Pacific led to an increase in the number of earthquakes.

• There is pressure on the sea floor due to the weight of water of the Pacific Ocean.

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NGSS.MS-ESS2-3

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