RESEARCH PAPER

ON
EARTHQUAKE AND TSUNAMI

A PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE

REQUIREMENTS IN ENGLISH 10
S.Y.2016-2017

SUBMITTED BY:DIANA SATO,ANA

MARIE PABORES,PETER JOHN
ROJO
SUBMITTED TO:SHARMIN
GUANCO
EARTHQUAKES:
An earthquake occurs when the pressure built up along a
fault becomes stronger than the pressure holding the
rocks together. Then the rocks on either side of the fault
suddenly rip apart, sometimes at supersonic speeds. The
two sides of the fault slide past one another, releasing the
pent-up pressure. Energy from this separation radiates
outward in all directions, including towards the surface,
where it is felt as an earthquake.

Even though the tectonic plates slide at a regular rate over

time, the way that faults release stored energy is different
with each earthquake, said Shimon Wdowinski, a
geophysicist at the University of Miami's Rosentiel School
of Marine & Atmospheric Sciences. "Every earthquake
doesn't repeat exactly what happened before. Sometimes
there is a big earthquakes, sometimes there are two or
three together," he told Live Science. "There is no
regularity."

A large earthquake is often followed by aftershocks, which

are smaller quakes that result from the crust adjusting to
the main shock. These aftershocks can help scientists
target the origin of the main quake, but can create
problems for those suffering its aftermath.
An earthquake's size, or magnitude, depends on how
large its parent fault is and how much it has slipped.
Because these faults extend from the surface down to
several miles deep, geologists can't simply visit the source
to calculate these numbers. Instead, they rely on a tool
known as a seismograph, which measures seismic waves,
or vibrations, from an earthquake.

An earthquake's magnitude is ranked on the moment

magnitude scale, not the Richter scale. The moment
magnitude scale provides a better idea of the shaking and
possible damage from earthquakes of all kinds around the
world
Earthquakes with magnitudes less than 3 occur every day,
and are generally not felt by people. A magnitude of 3 to 5
is considered minor, while a quake with a magnitude of 5
to 7 is moderate to strong. At the higher end, these quakes
can be destructive to cities. Earthquakes from 7 to 8 are
major; about 15 of these occur annually. Every year, at
least one earthquake with a magnitude over 8 a "great"
quake wreaks havoc. An earthquake with a magnitude
of 10 has never been measured, but it would create
widespread devastation.
By using the readings from at least three seismographs,
geologists can triangulate the origin of the earthquake. At
the fault, that origin is called the hypocenter; on the
surface, the epicenter.

Most of the major earthquakes strike on well-known fault

lines. Californians, for instance, are unlikely to be shocked
if they feel the ground shuddering beneath their feet. But a
draft map released by the U.S. Geological Survey in 2014
reveals that 42 out of the 50 states have a moderate
to high seismic hazard risk.
Famous quakes
1811-1812 Missouri. In the early 19th century, the
New Madrid series of earthquakes rattled the central
United States. No seismographs existed at the time, so
researchers used historical eyewitness accounts to
determine that the magnitudes of the quakes ranged
between 7 and 8. Huge waves formed on the Mississippi,
causing some portions of the river to appear to flow
backward.

1906 San Francisco, California, Magnitude:

8. About 3,000 people died from the earthquake, on
the San Andreas Fault, and resulting fire.

1923 Tokyo, Japan, Magnitude: 7.9. One of

the world's most destructive earthquakes, more than
142,000 people died from collapsing buildings and the
resulting firestorm. The quake also resulted in enormous
tsunami waves.
1960 Chile, Magnitude: 9.5. The largest
earthquake ever recorded, the 1960 quake in Chile killed
more than 1,600 people, with many of the deaths resulting
from tsunamis. Waves reached 38 feet (11.5 meters) and
carried debris as far as 2 miles (3.2 kilometers) inland.

1970 Peru, Magnitude: 7.9. Approximately

66,000 people died, many from collapsed buildings and a
post-earthquake avalanche.

2004 Indonesia, Magnitude: 9.1. The third

largest earthquake in the world in this century, the quake
killed more than 227,000 people. Powerful tsunami waves
crisscrossed the Indian Ocean and ravaged 12 Asian
countries.

2011 Japan, Magnitude: 9.0. More than 15,000

people were killed when an earthquake in northern Japan
triggered a giant tsunami. The tsunami also overwhelmed
a nuclear reactor, creating new problems for people in the
midst of destruction. [Japan Earthquake & Tsunami]

An earthquake is a sudden release of pent-up energy in

Earth's crust that has accumulated over time, generated
by shifting tectonic plates. When two sides of a fault, or
crack along a plate boundary, move apart or slide
suddenly past each other, energy gets released. The
waves of energy radiate outward from that jolt, often
producing shaking on Earth's surface, according to the

Japan is especially prone to earthquakes, as it lies in the

Pacific Ring of Fire, a U-shaped area in the Pacific Ocean
where several tectonic plates meet, and where many
earthquakes are generated.

A number of volcanoes are also found in this Ring of Fire.

And it was the particular interaction of the April 2016
earthquake with the Mount Aso volcano that triggered the
researchers' interest in how seismic activity could be
affected by the structure of volcanic clusters.
Shortly after the Kumamoto quake, the researchers visited
the epicenter the place on Earth's surface directly
above where the earthquake originated and spent 10
days investigating the ruptures left behind by the quake
In 1707, ruptures generated by the Houei-Tokai-Nankai
earthquake (magnitude 8.7) extended northward and
eventually terminated at the western side of Mount Fuji,
Lin wrote. And in 1930, the rupturing of the magnitude-7.3
North Izu earthquake was interrupted at the Hakone
volcano in Izu Peninsula
Lin, a professor in the Department of Earth and Planetary
Sciences at the Faculty and Graduate School of Science
at Kyoto University in Japan, said that although this is the
first reported evidence of a volcano putting a stop to an
earthquake, there are other historical examples that could
represent similar activity.

TSUNAMIS:
If the earthquake occurs in the ocean, it can push up
powerful waves, known as tsunamis. The sudden upward
or downward movement of the seafloor during an
earthquake creates large tsunami waves, similar to a child
splashing in the bathtub. Earthquakes can also trigger
tsunamis by unleashing underwater landslides, which also
displace huge amounts of seawater.
A tsunami is a series of ocean waves that sends surges of
water, sometimes reaching heights of over 100 feet (30.5
meters), onto land. These walls of water can cause
widespread destruction when they crash ashore

WHAT CAUSES A TSUNAMI?

These awe-inspiring waves are typically caused by
large, undersea earthquakes at tectonic plate
boundaries. When the ocean floor at a plate boundary
rises or falls suddenly, it displaces the water above it
and launches the rolling waves that will become a
tsunami.
Most tsunamisabout 80 percenthappen within the
Pacific Oceans Ring of Fire, a geologically active area
where tectonic shifts make volcanoes and earthquakes
common.
Tsunamis may also be caused by underwater landslides
or volcanic eruptions. They may even be launched, as
they frequently were in Earths ancient past, by the
impact of a large meteorite plunging into an ocean.
Tsunamis race across the sea at up to 500 miles (805
kilometers) an hourabout as fast as a jet airplane. At
that pace, they can cross the entire expanse of the
Pacific Ocean in less than a day. And their long
wavelengths mean they lose very little energy along the
way.

WHAT HAPPENS WHEN IT

HITS L AND
A tsunamis trough, the low point beneath the waves
crest, often reaches shore first. When it does, it
produces a vacuum effect that sucks coastal water
seaward and exposes harbor and sea floors. This
retreating of sea water is an important warning sign of
a tsunami, because the waves crest and its enormous
volume of water typically hit shore five minutes or so
later. Recognizing this phenomenon can save lives .
A tsunami is usually composed of a series of waves,
called a wave train, so its destructive force may be
compounded as successive waves reach shore. People
experiencing a tsunami should remember that the
danger may not have passed with the first wave and
should await official word that it is safe to return to
vulnerable locations.
Some tsunamis do not appear on shore as massive
breaking waves but instead resemble a quickly surging
tide that inundates coastal areas.
The best defense against any tsunami is early warning
that allows people to seek higher ground. The Pacific
Tsunami Warning System, a coalition of 26 nations
headquartered in Hawaii, maintains a web of seismic
equipment and water level gauges to identify tsunamis
at sea. Similar systems are proposed to protect coastal
areas worldwide.

THE EARTHQUAKE AND subsequent tsunami that

devastated Japan in 2011showed just how vulnerable
modern society is to the power of Mother Nature. While
tsunamis were largely unknown to the wider public before
the hugely destructive 2004 Boxing Day Tsunami, they
have occurred many times in the past.
Tsunamis can be generated by any significant
displacement of water in oceans or lakes, though are most
commonly created by the movement of tectonic plates
under the ocean floor, during an earthquake. But they can
also be caused by volcanic eruptions, glacial carving,
meteorite impacts or landslides

10 WORST TSUNAMIS
1. Sumatra, Indonesia - 26 December 2004
The 9.1 magnitude earthquake off the coast of Sumatra
was estimated to occur at a depth of 30 km. The fault zone
that caused the tsunami was roughly 1300 km long,
vertically displacing the sea floor by several metres along
that length. The ensuing tsunami was as tall as 50 m,
reaching 5 km inland near Meubolah, Sumatra. This
tsunami is also the most widely recorded, with nearly one
thousand combined tide gauge and eyewitness
measurements from around the world reporting a rise in
wave height, including places in the US, the UK and
Antarctica. An estimated US$10b of damages is attributed
to the disaster, with around 230,000 people reported
dead.
2. North Pacific Coast, Japan - 11 March 2011
A powerful tsunami travelling 800km per hour with 10m-
high waves swept over the east coast of Japan, killing more
than 18,000 people. The tsunami was spawned by an 9.0
magnitude earthquake that reached depths of 24.4km-
making it the fourth-largest earthquake ever recorded.
Approximately 452,000 people were relocated to shelters,
and still remain displaced from their destroyed homes.
The violent shaking resulted in a nuclear emergency, in
which the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant began
leaking radioactive steam. The World Bank estimates that
it could take Japan up to five years to financially overcome
the $235 billion damages.
3. Lisbon, Portugal - 1 November 1755
A magnitude 8.5 earthquake caused a series of three huge
waves to strike various towns along the west coast of
Portugal and southern Spain, up to 30 m high, in some
places. The tsunami affected waves as far away as Carlisle
Bay, Barbados, where waves were said to rise by 1.5 m. The
earthquake and ensuing tsunami killed 60,000 in the
Portugal, Morocco and Spain.
4. Krakatau, Indonesia - 27 August 1883
This tsunami event is actually linked to the explosion of
the Krakatau caldera volcano. Multiple waves as high as 37
m were propagated by the violent eruptions and
demolished the towns of Anjer and Merak. The sea was
reported to recede from the shore at Bombay, India and is
said to have killed one person in Sri Lanka. This event
killed around 40,000 people in total; however, as many as
2,000 deaths can be attributed directly to the volcanic
eruptions, rather than the ensuing tsunami.
5. Enshunada Sea, Japan - 20 September 1498
An earthquake, estimated to have been at least magnitude
8.3, caused tsunami waves along the coasts of Kii, Mikawa,
Surugu, Izu and Sagami. The waves were powerful enough
to breach a spit, which had previously separated Lake
Hamana from the sea. There were reports of homes
flooding and being swept away throughout the region, with
a total of at least 31,000 people killed.
6. Nankaido, Japan - 28 October 1707
A magnitude 8.4 earthquake caused sea waves as high as
25 m to hammer into the Pacific coasts of Kyushyu,
Shikoku and Honshin. Osaka was also damaged. A total of
nearly 30,000 buildings were damaged in the affected
regions and about 30,000 people were killed. It was
reported that roughly a dozen large waves were counted
between 3 pm and 4 pm, some of them extending several
kilometres inland at Kochi.
7. Sanriku, Japan - 15 June 1896
This tsunami propagated after an estimated magnitude 7.6
earthquake occurred off the coast of Sanriku, Japan. The
tsunami was reported at Shirahama to have reached a
height of 38.2 m, causing damage to more than 11,000
homes and killing some 22,000 people. Reports have also
been found that chronicle a corresponding tsunami hitting
the east coast of China, killing around 4000 people and
doing extensive damage to local crops.
8. Northern Chile - 13 August 1868
This tsunami event was caused by a series of two
significant earthquakes, estimated at a magnitude of 8.5,
off the coast of Arica, Peru (now Chile). The ensuing waves
affected the entire Pacific Rim, with waves reported to be
up to 21 m high, which lasted between two and three days.
The Arica tsunami was registered by six tide gauges, as far
off as Sydney, Australia. A total of 25,000 deaths and an
estimated US$300 million in damages were caused by the
tsunami and earthquakes combined along the Peru-Chile
coast.
9. Ryuku Islands, Japan - 24 April 1771
A magnitude 7.4 earthquake is believed to have caused a
tsunami that damaged a large number of islands in the
region; however, the most serious damage was restricted
to Ishigaki and Miyako Islands. It is commonly cited that
the waves that struck Ishigaki Island was 85.4 m high, but
it appears this is due to a confusion of the original
Japanese measurements, and is more accurately estimated
to have been around 11 to 15 m high. The tsunami
destroyed a total of 3,137 homes, killing nearly 12,000
people in total.
10. Ise Bay, Japan - 18 January 1586
The earthquake that caused the Ise Bay tsunami is best
estimated as being of magnitude 8.2. The waves rose to a
height of 6m, causing damage to a number of towns. The
town of Nagahama experienced an outbreak of fire as the
earthquake first occurred, destroying half the city. It is
reported that the nearby Lake Biwa surged over the town,
leaving no trace except for the castle.The Ise Bay tsunamis
caused more than 8000 deaths and a large amount
damage.