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Earthquake Effects Vocabulary
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Body waves:
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A seismic wave that travels through the interior of
the Earth and is not restricted to any boundary surface.
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Earthquake:
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A sudden motion or trembling in the Earth caused by
the abrupt release of slowly accumulated strain.
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Elastic energy:
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The energy stored within the Earth during elastic
deformation.
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Epicenter:
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That point on the Earth's surface which is directly
above the focus of an earthquake.
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Fault:
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A surface or zone of rock fracture along which there has
been displacement.
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Focus:
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That point on a fault at which the sudden break resulting
in an earthquake begins.
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Plate tectonics:
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The Earth's surface is composed of large, semirigid
sections (plates) about 50km (30 miles) thick that float across
the mantle, with seismic activity and volcanism occurring primarily
at the junctions of these sections.
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Plates:
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Large, nearly rigid, but still mobile segments of blocks
involved in plate tectonics, that include both crust and some
part of the upper mantle.
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P-waves (or primary waves):
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That type of seismic body wave which
is propagated by alternating compression and expansion of material
in the direction of propagation.
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Seismic energy:
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The energy that is released as vibrations during
an earthquake.
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Seismic waves:
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Waves produced by an earthquake, including both
body waves and surface waves.
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Strike-slip fault:
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A fault for which the movement or slip is parallel
to the strike (direction) of the fault.
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Surface waves:
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A seismic wave that travels along the surface of
the Earth.
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S-waves (or secondary waves):
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That type of seismic body wave which
is propagated by a shearing motion of material perpendicular to
the direction of travel.
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Tsunami:
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A sea wave produced by any large-scale disturbance of
the sea floor, principally by a submarine earthquake or by submarine
earth movement.
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