EPSC 185 Study Guide - Final Guide: San Andreas Fault, Divergent Boundary, Richter Magnitude Scale

• School: McGill University
• Department: Earth & Planetary Sciences
• Course: EPSC 185
• Professor: John Gyakum

Document Summary

Earthquakes are the result of the earth"s crust movement= whether this is the deformation of rocks along a fault, or even the movement of the tectonic plates. This movement/deformation causes either a small or large amnt of ground shaking and vibration on the surface of the earth"s crust, which is called an earthquake. The earth"s crust is composed of mobile tectonic plates, and where these plates interact with one another causes the majority of earthquakes recorded. Earthquakes can also be found on plate interiors, however it is less common. The plate boundaries allow us to predict where earthquakes will occur. There are 3 different forms of plate boundaries: divergent, convergent and transform boundaries. Divergent: divergent plate boundaries are where 2 tectonic plates are moving away from one another. The space created between the spreading of the 2 plates allows the earth"s mantle to rise, and therefore magma is injected into this space.