earthquake/volcano Flashcards
ring of fire
a region around much of the rim of the Pacific Ocean where many volcanic eruptions and earthquakes occur
Strike-slip fault
a fault in which rock strata are displaced mainly in a horizontal direction, parallel to the line of the fault.
Normal fault
a type of dip-slip fault where the hanging wall moves downwards from the footwall
Reverse fault
the block above the fault moves up relative to the block below the fault
P-waves
a seismic wave that causes particles of rock to move in a back-and-forth direction
S-waves
a seismic wave that causes particles of rock to move in a side-to-side direction
epicenter
the point on Earht’s surface directly above an earthquake’s starting point, or focus
focus
the point along a fault at which the first motion of an earthquake occurs
Richter magnitude scale
quantitative measure of an earthquake’s magnitude
explosive volcano
volcanic eruptions that make clouds of debris, ash, and gas rapidly shoot out from the volcano
nonexplosive volcano
volcanic eruptions that produce calm flows of lava
Krakatoa
a series of four huge volcanic explosions almost destroyed the island
Yellowstone supervolcano
a volcanic caldera and supervolcano in Yellowstone National Park in the Western United States
San Andreas fault
a continental transform fault that extends roughly 1,200 kilometers through California
Mid-oceanic ridge
a seafloor mountain system formed by plate tectonics
