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THIRD ROCK FROM THE SUN

SHAKE IT UP, BABY! 3050-0103

"The mountains seemed to walk" is what a Chinese writer said about an earthquake he experienced. During earthquakes whole sections of land can be moved out of place. Earthquakes begin as pressures builds in and under the crust from the slow movement of plates. As the pressure increases, the crust begins to bend. Like stretching a rubber band, the pressures increase until the rocks break and cause the ground to shake.

Every two or three minutes there is an earthquake somewhere in the world. In fact, there are over a million earthquakes each year on this planet. Scientists who study earthquakes are called seismologists. Now it is your turn. Do you think that you can be a seismologist? By clicking the site to the left, you can find out the answers to questions you might have about earthquakes. To the right, you can find out more about earthquakes and learn how to determine where earthquakes happen. You will need an adult to help you on this one.

YOU'RE THE SCIENTIST

Explain It!

Hey you Seismologist, can you answer the following?

1. Most earthquakes take place in the upper _________ miles of the Earth's crust.

2. What is a seismogram?

3. What is an epicenter?

4. Explain liquefaction.

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Created July 28, 1999 by Kathleen Ochsenbein