Bam Earthquake 2003
Living within a dynamic system requires humans to use scientific knowledge to predict and prepare for large scale events, since not a day goes by without a change in the Earth: The continents drifting away, land rising, and faults. This essay will focus on one main thing: earthquakes. An earthquake measured magnitude 6.6, according to United States Geological Survey, which happened in Bam, Iran in the year 2003. This earthquake was caused by a “buried” fault in the Earth, said to rupture every 2,000 years. After rupturing, it will heal over a period of years (Jet Propulsion Laboratory, National Aeronautics Space Association, 2009). This earthquake was called a national tragedy by the Iranian President Khatami (British Broadcasting Corporation, 2003). It affected a part of the Iranian society, which leads to the question of how you could prevent similar effects on the society in lethal earthquake situations: this will be the social factor of the devastating earthquake.
The Earth moves and changes in many different ways, and one way of changing is during an earthquake. Another method of Earth changes is a fault: a movement when two tectonic plates build up energy and then may move in different ways depending on the plate boundary. These faults happen on tectonic plate boundaries, also known as fault lines, where two tectonic plates meet. Tectonic plates are what continents stand on, which are in fact slowly drifting apart. A theory proposed by Alfred Wegener, called the Theory of Continental Drift, says that the Earth’s mantle is a semi-solid, and the tectonic plates are floating on the mantle, and since the continents are on the plates, the continents drift with the plates. There are four main types of faults: ...
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National Aeronautics Space Association (NASA). (2009, March 4). Scientists Expose 'Buried' Fault That Caused Deadly 2003 Quake - NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Retrieved April 16, 2014, from http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news.php?release=2009-039
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Earthquakes are a natural part of the Earth’s evolution. Scientific evidence leads many geologists to believe that all of the land on Earth was at one point in time connected. Because of plate tectonic movements or earthquakes, continental drift occurred separating the one massive piece of land in to the seven major continents today. Further evidence supports this theory, starting with the Mid-Atlantic ridge, a large mass of plate tectonics, which are increasing the size of the Atlantic Ocean while shrinking the Pacific. Some scientists believe that the major plate moveme...
Tarbuck E., Lutgens F., Tasa D., 2014, An Introduction to Physical Geology, 5th Ed, Pearson Education, Upper Saddle River, New Jersey.
When the quake, registering 6.1 on the Richter scale, first struck, it was thought to be centered along the Old Whittier Fault. However, after extensive study, it was determined that it was actually the result of a "new" fault, or a fault that had not previously been discovered by scientists.
Ralph Waldo Emerson once said, “we learn geology the morning after the earthquake.” Fortunately for those living along the San Andreas Fault line in California, there are people behind the scenes, from geologists to city and emergency planners, who have no intention of waiting that long.
Heller, Arnie. "The 1906 San Francisco Earthquake." Science & Technology (2006): 4-12. Web. 8 May 2014.
From studying the science behind the San Francisco earthquake, scientists have made a number of important discoveries involving how earthquakes function. At 5:12 on a fateful April morning in 1906, the mammoth Pacific and North American plates sheared each other at an incredible twenty-one feet along the San Andreas fault, surpassing the annual average of two inches (“San Francisco Earthquake of 1906”) (“The Great 1906 Earthquake and Fires”). A few seconds later, the destructive earthquake occurred. The ground shifted at almost five feet per second, and the shaking could be felt all the way from southern Oregon to southern Los Angeles to central Nevada (“Quick”) (“The Great 1906 San Francisco Earthquake”). In fact, the earthquake could be registered in a seismograph on Capetown, South Africa, an astounding 10,236 miles away...
U.S. Geological Survey. "The Great 1906 San Francisco Earthquake." The Great 1906 San Francisco Earthquake. United States Geological Survey, 18 July 2012. Web. 1 Mar. 2014.
Before examining the Northridge event, understanding the naturally occurring hazard that is an earthquake will help to better understand exactly what happened and why it was such an important geological event. With four distinct layers, two layers, the crust and upper portion of the mantle, compose the skin that is the surface layer of the Earth. The crust is not a single, continuous piece. It is actually several different pieces, or plates, that come together to form the puzzle that comprises the surface of the Earth. These plates are in constant motion rubbing against one another. These areas, known as fault lines, where the plates rub up against one another have spots where one plate ”gets stuck while the rest of the plate keeps moving. When the plate has moved far enough, the edges unstick and is how most of the earthquakes around the world occur” (Wald, 2012). The energy stored from the friction of the two plate...
study of the San Andreas fault system." (USGS) When the 1906 earthquake struck scientist set
U.S. Geological Survey. "The Great 1906 San Francisco Earthquake." The Great 1906 San Francisco Earthquake. United States Geological Survey, 18 July 2012. Web. 01 Mar. 2014.
“United States. National Park Service. "1906 Earthquake: Law Enforcement."National Parks Service. U.S. Department of the Interior, 27 Apr. 2014. Web. 10 May 2014.
The epicenter of the earthquake in Alaska was about 10km east of the College Fiord, approximately 90km west of Valdez and 120km east of Anchorage, Alaska largest city. The earthquake was felt about 1,300,000 square kilometers away from the epicenter. (Christensen, Doug PhD.) About 30 kilometers deep, the first slip occurred under northern Prince William Sound, and an 800 kilometer rupture in the rocks extended horizontally, roughly parallel to the Aleutian trench. (Bolt) The cause of this massive earthquake was the vertical displacement of northwest motion of the Pacific plate. Also, it was estimated that about 200,000 square kilometers of the crust were deformed, making this the greatest area of vertical displacement ever measured. (Bolt)
The 6.7 magnitude earthquake was felt throughout most of southern California and as far away as Utah and Mexico with a max acceleration of 1.0g in several different areas and the highest at Tarzana with a recorded value of 1.8g. The earthquake also deformed over 1500 square miles of the Earth’s crust, forcing the surface upward in a dome shape. The Susana Mountains sustained the most soil deformation with an uplift of around 15cm causing numerous rockslides, blocking many roadways. Soil liquefaction was observed in the Simi Valley area and other parts of the Los Angeles Basin. After all the term oil ended the preliminary cost estimate of damage was between 15 and 20 billion U.S. dollars. Today, Geologists remain to search for thrust faults throughout the southern California area by using a 3 dimensional modeling system to view folds and upli...
It was a beautiful day like any other with the clear blue sky and the
Earthquakes belong to the class of most disastrous natural hazards. They result in unexpected and tremendous earth movements. These movements results from dissemination of an enormous amount of intense energy in form of seismic waves which are detected by use of seismograms. The impact of earthquakes leaves behind several landmarks including: destruction of property, extensive disruption of services like sewer and water lines, loss of life, and causes instability in both economic and social components of the affected nation (Webcache 2).