Picture Of The Day

Exam 1 Results
10
9
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5

Series1

4
3
2
1
0
39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64

Average: 59
Celepration of survival of the Bolognesi EQ1650
National Geographics

P-wave: always the champ!

LAST LECTURE

Richter vs. Mercalli

LAST LECTURE

LAST LECTURE

Causes for Earthquakes

Causes for Earthquakes

Earthquake: Sudden release of strain energy

caused by rock rupture (faulting)

Earthquake: Sudden release of strain energy

caused by rock rupture (faulting)
Earthquakes induced by human activities

Much smaller magnitude

Reservoir-induced earthquakes
Deep waste disposal and earthquake
Nuclear explosions

LAST LECTURE

Human-caused earthquakes. Rocky Mountain Arsenal Well

Relationship between earthquake frequency and the rate of

injection of liquid waste

Material Amplification
Seismic waves travel differently through different
rock materials
Propagate faster through dense and solid rocks
Material amplification: Intensity (amplitude of
vertical movement) of ground shaking more
severe in unconsolidated materials
Seismic energy attenuated more and
propagated less distance in unconsolidated
materials

Ancient lake deposits amplified shaking in Mexico City.

1985 (M 8.1) Mexico City Earthquake

Collapse of a freeway during 1989 Loma Prieta quake

1989 Loma Prieta earthquake
(M 7.1), San Francisco Bay
area.
Severe shaking occurred in
bay fill and mud (freeway
collapsed and Marina district
was damaged.

Collapsed freeway. 1989 earthquake

Collapsed freeway. 1989 earthquake

Marina District, San Francisco 1989 (M 7.1) earthquake

Effect of
Earthquakes
Primary effects
Ground shaking,
tilting, and ground
rupture
Loss of life and
collapse of
infrastructure
Landslides,
liquefaction, and
tsunamis

Earthquake Destruction
Amount of structural
damage attributable to
earthquake vibrations
depends on
Intensity and duration
of the vibrations
Nature of the material
upon which the
structure rests
Design of the structure

Secondary effects
Fires, floods, and
diseases

Earthquake Destruction
Ground shaking
Regions within 20 to 50
kilometers of the
epicenter will experience
about the same intensity
of ground shaking
However, destruction
varies considerably
mainly due to the nature
of the ground on which
the structures are built

Earthquake destruction
Destruction from seismic vibrations
Liquefaction of the ground
Unconsolidated materials saturated with
water turn into a mobile fluid

Seiches
The rhythmic sloshing of water in lakes,
reservoirs, and enclosed basins
Waves can weaken reservoir walls and
cause destruction

Liquefaction (1964 Niigata, Japan, earthquake)

Liquefaction caused by the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake

Earthquake destruction
Landsliding
70,000 people killed in the 1970 Peru
earthquake (Mw=7.7 ); 20,000 of them
were killed by a giant landslide that
buried several towns.

Collapse of beach road

Sand blow at Orkland International Airport

Sand blow at bay bridge

Earthquake-triggered landslide. M 7.9 Alaskan earthquake,

partially covering Black Rapids Glacier. This is one of thousands!

Landslide of the great Alaska (03/28/1964, Mw-9.2) earthquake

Earthquake destruction

Fire
~80% of the damage in the 1906 San
Francisco earthquake was caused by
fire the quake was known as the San
Francisco fire.