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Worksheets

Earthquakes

Total questions: 45

Worksheet time: 12mins

Name
Class
Date
1.
The epicenter of an earthquake is
a)
The point below the surface where rock begins to break and the first motion occurs
b)
The seismic station closest to the earthquake
c)
The place where the greatest damage occurs
d)
The point on the surface directly above the focus
2.
This famous transform fault is located in the western United States creates significant earthquake activity for California
a)
New Madrid
b)
Denali Fault
c)
Ramapo Seismic Zone
d)
San Andreas
3.
The Richter scale measures:
a)
the amount of radon gas released
b)
the movement of plates
c)
the strength of an earthquake
d)
the weight of tectonic plates
4.
Which travels fastest, always being the first detected by seismic stations?
a)
P waves
b)
S waves
5.
An instrument that detects and measures earthquakes is a 
a)
seismogram
b)
focus seismic map
c)
focus
d)
seismograph 
6.
Most earthquakes happen along the _________________. 
a)
coast
b)
faults
c)
desert
d)
directions
7.
This earthquake is......?
a)
Convergent
b)
Transform
c)
Divergent
d)
Rift Zone
8.
This earthquake is......?
a)
Convergent
b)
Transform
c)
Divergent
d)
Rift Zone
9.
Smaller earthquakes that occur in the same area after a larger earthquake has occurred.
a)
aftershock
b)
liquefaction
c)
tsunami
10.
Who developed the procedure used to measure the size of an earthquake?
a)
Edward Sheridan
b)
James Hutton
c)
Charles Richter
d)
Art Smith
11.
What is this scale?
a)
Modern Magnitude Scale
b)
Mercalli Scale
c)
Richter Scale
d)
None of the above.
12.
What is this scale?
a)
Modern Magnitude Scale
b)
Mercalli Scale
c)
Richter Scale
d)
None of the above.
13.

The distance between an epicenter and seismograph’s location can be calculated by using the

a)

arrival time of the first P-wave

b)

difference in arrival times between P- and S- waves

c)

amplitude of the p-wave

d)

energy released by an earthquake

14.

Which evidence recorded at seismic stations following an earthquake supports the inference that Earth’s interior changes from solid rock to molten iron and nickel at the mantle-core boundary?

a)

P-waves arrive earlier than S-waves.

b)

P-waves and S-waves are both recorded at all stations.

c)

Only S-waves are recorded at all stations.

d)

Only P-waves are recorded on the opposite side of Earth.

15.

The place where an earthquake originates inside the Earth's surface is called...

a)

Epicenter

b)

Focus

c)

Underground

d)

Crust

16.

Which city is closest to the epicenter?

a)

A

b)

B

c)

C

17.

Which seismogram represents a city that is far from the epicenter of an earthquake?

a)

New York, NY

b)

Nome, Alaska

c)

Guadalajara, Mexico

18.

What scale determines the amount of damage an earthquake causes?

a)

Richter scale

b)

Mercalli scale

c)

Moment magnitude scale

d)

seismographic scale

19.
An area where no direct seismic waves from a particular earthquake can be detected is called
a)
an inactive fault zone
b)
the mesosphere
c)
a shadow zone
d)
the atmosphere
20.

What is the minimum number of seismograph stations needed to locate an earthquake epicenter?

a)

1

b)

2

c)

3

d)

5

21.
An earthquake scored high on the Richter scale but low on the Mercalli scale. Why?
a)
it probably happened in an area with no people
b)
it was a fast earthquake
c)
because it damaged a lot
d)
impossible to tell
22.

All of the following are reasons some buildings are damaged more than others during an earthquake EXCEPT....

a)

The strength of the building materials.

b)

How close the building was to the earthquake's epicenter.

c)

What type of soil the building sat on.

d)

The people living inside of the building.

e)

The design of the building.

23.
Which body waves cause particles of rock material to move at right angles to the direction in which the waves are traveling?
a)
Body Waves
b)
P Waves
c)
S Waves
d)
Surface Waves
24.
Which body wave squeezes and stretches rock materials as they pass through the Earth?
a)
Body Waves
b)
P Waves
c)
S Waves
d)
Surface Waves
25.
What is another term for P Wave?
a)
Compression Wave
b)
Principal Wave
c)
Shear Wave
d)
Secondary Wave
26.
P Waves can move through which of the following?
a)
Gas
b)
Liquid
c)
Solid
d)
All of these
27.
S Waves can move through which of the following?
a)
Gas
b)
Liquid
c)
Solid
d)
All of these
28.
What is the measure of the amount of energy released in an earthquake?
a)
Earthquake
b)
Epicenter
c)
Magnitude
d)
Seismogram
29.

At which point marks the epicenter of the earthquake?

a)

A

b)

B

c)

C

d)

D

30.

P waves and S waves are also known as

a)

surface waves

b)

ground waves

c)

body waves

d)

first waves

31.

The strain which causes a material to twist is known as

a)

stress

b)

tension

c)

compression

d)

shear

32.

A seismogram is located 4500 km away from the epicenter of an earthquake. What is the difference in time between when the P-waves reach the seismogram and the S-waves reach the seismogram?

a)

5 1/2 minutes

b)

6 minutes

c)

10 minutes

d)

22 minutes

33.

Which type of seismic wave is shown in the picture?

a)

Princess Wave

b)

Primary Wave

c)

Secondary Wave

d)

Love Wave

34.

Which type of seismic wave is shown in the picture?

a)

Princess Wave

b)

Primary Wave

c)

Secondary Wave

d)

Love Wave

35.

Letter A is labeling the:

a)

Focus

b)

Epicenter

c)

Fault Line

d)

Volcano

36.

Letter C is labeling the:

a)

Focus

b)

Epicenter

c)

Fault Line

d)

Volcano

37.

Which wave causes the most damage?

a)

Primary

b)

Surface

c)

Secondary

d)

Princess

38.

If the P-wave takes 7 minutes to arrive. The epicenter is about how far away?

a)

2000 km

b)

4000 km

c)

6000 km

d)

8000 km

39.

If the S-wave traveled 9000 km, the travel time for the wave would be about:

a)

12 minutes

b)

22 minutes

c)

cannot be determined

d)

3 minutes

40.

If the lag time recorded by the seismograph is 3 minutes between the P-wave and S-wave then the epicenter is about how far away?

a)

100 km

b)

2000 km

c)

5000 km

d)

8000 km

41.

In this picture the epicenter is located:

a)

Anywhere on both of the circles

b)

Between the 2 circles in the overlapping section

c)

The 2 points where the circles intersect

d)

Nowhere in this picture because a third circle is needed

42.

With increasing distance from the epicenter, the time difference between the arrival times of the P-wave and S-wave ______________________.

a)

increases

b)

decreases

c)

stays the same

d)

is equal

43.

Which part of the seismogram shows the start of the surface waves?

a)

A

b)

B

c)

C

d)

A and B

44.

Which of the following can trigger a tsunami?

a)

undersea earthquake

b)

undersea landslides

c)

eruption of an oceanic volcano

d)

all of these

45.

The Richter scale using a logarithmic scale which means...

a)

The scale is 1-10

b)

Each interval increase is 32 times greater

c)

Category 10 is 10 times more intense than a category 1

d)

The same scale NASA uses