1001 Space Earth Earth Rocks and Minerals Landscape Sea Weather and Climate Natural Disasters Resources Nature History Human World Science and Technology

Choose a Page:Where are extinct volcanoes found?What makes an avalanche so deadly?What happens inside a volcano?What causes landslides?*What causes an earthquake?*Are some volcanoes more dangerous ...What is a caldera?How does wildfire spread?What is a waterspout?Can disasters be predicted?Where do volcanoes happen most?Is a typhoon the same thing as a h...Is a twister like a hurricane? What causes an earthquake? When two of the Earth's plates move against each other, pressure builds up along the boundary. Often the plates are locked together, unable to move as the pressure increases. Eventually the stress is so great that the crust ruptures, the rock masses jump past one another, and shock waves spread out in a destructive burst of energy. The result is an earthquake. An earthquake is most violent at its epicentre, the point on the surface directly above the source.   Previous: Back Book: 1001 Section: Earth Chapter: Natural Disasters