3 Earthquake Genesis

Theological preoccupations during the Middle Ages put a temporary end to speculation
about the origin of earthquakes. The Wrath-of-God theory of earthquakes had its origin
in Old Testament interpretations of natural disasters, such as the destruction of Sodom and
Gomorrah, and the fall of Jericho, which may have been early instances of seismic activity in
the Jordan Trough. Naturalistic explanations of earthquakes were formally banned as heresy
by a father of the Church in the 5th Century.

Cinna Lomnitz, 1974

3.1 INTRODUCTION
Ever since human beings first felt the earth shake, they have had the desire to know why that happens
and developed, as a result, numerous explanations for it. For the most part, however, these expla-
nations have been based on superstitious beliefs. For example, the ancient Japanese believed that
the islands of Japan rested on the back of a giant catfish whose movements made the earth shake.
The Algonquin Indians of North America believed that a giant tortoise supported the earth, which
shook whenever the tortoise shifted from one foot to another. For the ancient Mexicans, the earth
was a divine being with monster features, generally with those of a reptile and a fish, which caused
earthquakes when it moved. In a similar fashion, a frog has been the culprit in parts of Asia, a giant
mole in India, and an ox in China. Earthquakes were also often interpreted as a form of punishment
from angry gods. In Greek mythology, Poseidon, ruler of the sea, caused earthquakes when he was
angry. His counterpart in ancient Rome was Neptune, who not only could instill fear into people with
earthquakes, but also could punish them with floods over the land and waves onto the shore. Even
eighteenth-century European clergymen tended to view earthquakes from a moralistic standpoint. In
1752, a London journalist wrote: “Earthquakes generally happen to great cities and towns. The chas-
tening rod is directed where there are inhabitants, the objects of its monition, not to bare cliffs and
uninhabited beach.” After the famous Lisbon earthquake of 1755, which caused a great loss of life
from a sequence of several shocks and a giant tsunami, a clergyman in England chastised the people
of Lisbon for their lewdness and debauchery, whereas others blamed the dreadful inquisition and
noted that the Palace of the Inquisition was one of the first buildings destroyed. An early attempt for a
scientific explanation was made by Aristotle, who found an explanation for the cause of earthquakes
in the interior of the earth. Aristotle theorized that the winds of the atmosphere were drawn into the
caverns and passageways in the interior of the earth and that earthquakes and the eruption of volca-
noes were caused by these winds as they were agitated by fire and moved about trying to escape.
Today, after the numerous scientific developments of the twentieth century and the many years
of geological and seismological studies, there seems to be a clear understanding of what causes
earthquakes, and where and how often they may occur. This chapter, thus, introduces the modern
theories that explain the mechanisms that give birth to earthquakes and the phenomena that are
deemed responsible for these mechanisms. It will also describe the observed correlation between
such earthquake-generating mechanisms and some prominent features on the earth’s surface, the
locations where earthquakes occur, and the frequency of earthquake occurrence. Additionally,
a brief account will be given of the efforts being made to use the current understanding of the

37
Earthquake Genesis 38

earthquake-generating mechanism to develop techniques for the near-term prediction of the size,
time, and location of future earthquakes.

3.2 TYPES OF EARTHQUAKES

In the most general sense of the word, an earthquake is nothing else but a phenomenon that involves
the motion or shaking of the earth’s crust. In this general sense, an earthquake may be, therefore,
caused by (a) tectonic forces (the forces involved in the formation of the earth’s features), (b) volcanic
activity, (c) conventional and nuclear explosions, (d) the sliding or fall of a large soil or rock mass (such
as in the case of landslides and the collapse of mines and caverns), (e) a meteorite impact, and (f) the
filling of reservoirs and wells (see Box 3.1). However, the earthquakes produced by volcanic activity,
a soil or rock mass collapse, a conventional explosion, a meteorite impact, or the filling of reservoirs
and wells are, for the most part, of a relatively small size and affect only an area of limited extent.
Earthquakes generated by a nuclear explosion may be strong, but the factors that generate these earth-
quakes are known and may be controlled. In contrast, the earthquakes generated by tectonic forces
may be exceptionally large and may affect a large geographical region at once. In fact, most of the
catastrophic earthquakes that have occurred through historical times have been of the tectonic type.
The discussion in this chapter will be, therefore, limited to the generation of tectonic earthquakes.

Box 3.1 Earthquakes Triggered by Filling of Reservoirs and Wells

There exists nowadays plenty of evidence which demonstrates that earthquakes can be
generated by the filling of great reservoirs. One of the earliest instances in record took place
when the Hoover Dam on the Colorado River was completed and Lake Mead began to fill.
Before the construction of the dam, no seismic activity had been recorded in the region
around Lake Mead. After the lake began to fill in 1936, earthquakes began to occur. The
largest (magnitude 5) one occurred in 1939 when the lake was ∼80% full. The maximum lake
level was reached in 1941, and low-level seismic activity has continued ever since. The larg-
est reservoir-induced earthquake took place at Koyna Dam, near Bombay, India. Koyna Dam
was also constructed in a nonseismic zone. However, soon after the reservoir began to fill in
1962, small earthquakes shook the region around it. The reservoir was full in 1965. In 1967,
several significant earthquakes occurred. The largest one, with a magnitude of 6.4, caused 177
deaths and extensive damage in a nearby village. After that earthquake, the seismic activity
decreased and seems to have stopped. Similar events have occurred in China (Hsinfengkiang
Dam), France (Monteynard Dam), Zimbabwe-Rhodesia (Kariba Dam), Greece (Kremasta
Dam), California (Oroville Dam), and Egypt (Aswan Dam). Reservoir-induced earthquakes
are usually small, although several have had magnitudes between 5 and 6, and three have had
magnitudes >6.
The filling of wells can also generate earthquakes. This phenomenon was first noted at
the Rocky Mountain Arsenal, located northeast of Denver, Colorado, on the outskirts of the
city. A boring ∼3 km deep was drilled for the purpose of disposing of contaminated water.
The wastewater was pumped in the boring beginning in 1962, and almost immediately earth-
quakes began to occur. Pumping continued at various rates during the next 4 years but was
discontinued when it became evident that the number of earthquakes was closely related to the
amount of fluid injected into the earth. The earthquakes were felt by the residents of Denver.
Most of the earthquakes were small, although the largest, which occurred a year after the
filling was stopped, had a magnitude of 5.2. An opportunity to verify this phenomenon came
a few years later near Rangely, a small city in northwestern Colorado. Oil production at the
Rangely oil field began in 1945; the oil was taken from a sandstone formation ∼1.5 km below
the surface. Fluid pressures in the rocks decreased as a result of the oil removal until 1957,
Earthquake Genesis 39

at which time water was pumped back into the wells to facilitate secondary oil recovery. Begin-
ning in 1969, the U.S. Geological Survey pumped water in and out of these wells. It was found
that small earthquakes (magnitudes <3.5) were occurring frequently in the injection zone and
that the amount of seismic activity was correlated with the pumping and the increase in pore
water pressure. When injection took place and pore water pressure increased, the number of
earthquakes increased. In contrast, when the water was pumped out the number decreased.
The occurrence of earthquakes induced by the filling of reservoirs and wells has been
explained on the basis of the additional stresses that may be generated by the weight of water
on nearby geological faults and the increase in water pressure, which may reduce the shear
strength between the sides of these faults.

3.3 EARTH STRUCTURE

The earth is roughly spherical, with an equatorial diameter of 12,740 km and a polar diameter of
12,700 km, the higher equatorial diameter caused by the higher velocities at the equator due to the
earth’s rotation. Its mass is ∼4.9 × 1021 kg, which implies an average specific gravity of 5.5. As the
specific gravity of the rocks at the surface of the earth is between 2.7 and 3, it may be, thus, inferred
that the materials in the interior have higher specific gravities.
In a macroscopic scale, the interior of the earth is divided into four concentric layers: (a) inner
core, (b) outer core, (c) mantle, and (d) crust (see Figure 3.1). The inner core lies at the center of the
earth with a radius of ∼1216 km. It is thought to be solid, is composed of nickel and iron, and has a
specific gravity of ∼15. Further toward the surface is the outer core with a thickness of ∼2270 km.
It appears to be in a liquid state and is composed mainly of iron, oxygen, and silicon. Its specific
gravity is estimated to be between 9 and 12. The mantle extends from the base of the crust to a depth

Depth
0 Crust
Upper
mantle
650 km

Lower
mantle

2900 km

Outer
core
4980 km

Inner
6370 km
core

FIGURE 3.1 Internal structure of the earth.

Earthquake Genesis 40

Ocean

Oceanic crust
Continental crust

Mantle

FIGURE 3.2 Cross section of the earth’s crust under the oceans and continents.

of 2885 km and is composed of dense granitic and basaltic rocks in a viscous, semimolten state, the
result of temperatures as high as 2000°C (for comparison steel melts at 1500°C). It has a specific
gravity between 4 and 5 and is divided into the upper mantle and the lower mantle to reflect the
existence of a discontinuity in the properties of its composing materials. The crust thickness ranges
between 25 and 60 km under the continents and between 4 and 6 km under the oceans. In addition
to being thinner, the oceanic crust is also, in general, more uniform and denser than the continental
crust. The crust is composed of granitic and basaltic rocks (see Figure 3.2).
Independently from the actual structure of the earth, the layer that embodies its outermost
100 km (which includes the crust) is considered to be a layer of rigid rock and is identified as the
lithosphere (from the Greek lithos: stone). Similarly, it is considered that there is a layer of ∼400 km
in thickness below the lithosphere with relatively softer rocks. This layer is called the asthenosphere
(from the Greek asthenes: without strength). The rock materials making up the lithosphere and
asthenosphere are of a similar type, with the demarcation between the two established on the basis
of their different rigidity.

3.4 PLATE TECTONICS THEORY

The theory of plate tectonics postulates that the earth’s crust is fractured and thus divided into
a small number of large and rigid pieces, referred to as plates. The size of these plates varies from a
few hundred to many thousands of kilometers. Their location, as well as their given names, is shown
in Figure 3.3. The theory of plate tectonics also postulates that these plates float on the semimolten
asthenosphere and that they move relative to one another. At some locations, these plates are moving
apart (diverge) and at others the plates are moving toward each other (converge) or sliding past each
other, as shown in Figure 3.3. Plate tectonics theory also asserts that plate motion is responsible for
the long-term, large-scale formation and changes occurring on the earth’s surface and for most of
the seismic and volcanic activity around the world. It claims, further, that earthquakes take place
near these plate boundaries as a result of the stresses that build up in the earth’s crust as the plates
tend to move and interact with one another.
The theory of plate tectonics has evolved from the theory of continental drift originally
proposed by the German scientist Alfred Wegener in 1915. Wegener’s theory of continental drift
proclaimed that the earth’s surface was not static, but dynamic, and that the oceans and continents
are in constant motion. He based his assertion on the similarity between the coastlines, geology, and
life forms of eastern South America and western Africa, and the southern part of India and northern
part of Australia. He believed that 200 million years ago the earth had only one large continent that
he called Pangaea (see Figure 3.4) and that this large continent broke into pieces that slowly drifted
toward the current position of the current continents.
Earthquake Genesis 41

Eurasia Plate Eurasia

Plate

Kuril A
Juan
Trench North
De Fuca
America
Japan Plate
plate Caribbean
Trench
Plate
Marianas Pacific
Trench Mexico Africa Plate
Plate Trench
New Hebrides Cocos
Trench Plate
South American
Plate
KermadecTonga Nazca
Australia Plate Trench Plate

Macquarie
Ridge

Antarctic Plate Antarctic Plate

FIGURE 3.3 Major tectonic plates of the earth and their general direction of movement. (After
Fowler, C.M.R., The Solid Earth: An Introduction to Global Geophysics, Cambridge University Press,
Cambridge, U.K., 1990.)

Sinus 80
Borealis

40

20
Panthalassa

80 40 0 40 80 120

20
Sinus
Australis
40

S 60

80

FIGURE 3.4 Position of continents 200 million years ago. (Reproduced with permission of N.H. Prentiss,
from Dietz, R.S. and Holden, J.C., Scientific American, October 1970.)

Although the theory of continental drift was received with contempt when it was originally
proposed, today this theory and that of plate tectonics have become widely accepted and
acknowledged as one of the greatest advances in the earth sciences. Their acceptance has come as
a result of studies conducted after the 1960s, which, with the help of a modern worldwide network
of earthquake-recording instruments, the developing of new techniques such as deep-water echo
sounding, and a detailed exploration of the ocean floor, have provided a strong supporting evidence
Earthquake Genesis 42

of the historical movement of the continents postulated by the theory of continental drift. Moreover,
precise geodetic measurements have shown that the plates identified by the plate tectonics theory
are indeed moving relative to one another and that this motion is between 1 and 13 cm/year.

3.5 PLATE INTERACTION, FORMATION OF EARTH’S SURFACE

FEATURES, AND EARTHQUAKE GENERATION
As a result of the differential motion between them, tectonic plates interact with one another in
three distinct ways, giving rise to an assortment of effects on the earth’s surface. When two plates
diverge, a rift is developed, creating a condition where molten basaltic magma from the astheno-
sphere rises to lift up the plate edges and create new crust (see Figure 3.5). Most of the known plate
divergence occurs in what is now ocean area. This process of plate divergence, known as sea-floor
spreading, has been responsible for the formation of the mid-oceanic ridges and rises (submarine
mountain chains) as well as the deep valleys in between. Examples are the Mid-Atlantic Ridge,
East Pacific Rise, and South Indian Rise (see Figure 3.3). Earthquake and volcano activity is
involved along the boundaries of these diverging plates, although the earthquakes that occur there
are usually of low magnitude. Earthquakes are triggered when the tensional forces that produce the
plate divergence fracture the newly formed crust. Spreading ridges may protrude above the ocean
as in the case of the island of Iceland, where, with its 150 volcanoes, volcanic activity is nearly
continuous.
When two plates converge, the plates either collide head on or one dives beneath the other.
Where an oceanic plate and a continental plate converge, the oceanic plate, being thinner and
heavier, tends to be pushed below the continental plate (dips) to form what is known as a subduction
zone (see Figure 3.6). In this process, the edge of the oceanic plate below the continental one melts
and becomes part of the asthenosphere. The creation of new crust where plates diverge is thus bal-
anced by an equivalent loss at a subduction zone, which together complete a continuous cycle that
replaces the ocean floor every 200 million years or so. Subduction zones exist off the coasts of
Mexico and Chile, south of the Aleutian Islands, off the eastern coast of Japan, and off the coasts

FIGURE 3.5 Schematic view of mid-oceanic ridges and spreading oceanic plates causing the rising of
magma from the asthenosphere to form new ocean floor.
Earthquake Genesis 43

FIGURE 3.6 Subduction of oceanic plate under continental plate.

of Washington and Oregon (see Figure 3.3). Plate subduction has given birth to the deep trenches
that are found under the oceans. The Marianas Trench with a depth of 10,915 m (deepest ocean
spot) and the Peru–Chile Trench with a depth of 8063 m are both located at the boundaries where
an oceanic plate subducts under a continental one. Plate subduction also gives rise to some of the
world’s most powerful earthquakes. In fact, almost 90% of the seismic energy released by tectonic
plate movement comes from earthquakes generated in subduction zones. Earthquakes occur above
the subducting plate in regions of the continental plate and at the interface between the subducting
and overriding plates. The latter occurs along a well-defined area, known as the Benioff zone, which
outlines the subducting plate (see Figure 3.7). Earthquakes in these zones are known to take place at
depths as great as 700 km. It is believed that earthquakes cannot occur at depths >700 km because
beyond this depth a subducting plate melts. Subduction zones are also known to be regions of active
volcanism (for instance, the Andes Mountains of South America). Apparently, the volcanic activity
is related to the surface breakthrough of a rising, low-density magma, created when the ocean crust,
carried into the asthenosphere by the subducting plate, melts (see Figure 3.8).
When two plates carrying continental crust converge, there is no subduction as it occurs at
the ocean trenches. Being lightweight and thick, continental crust is too buoyant to sink into the
asthenosphere. In this case, the plates simply collide head on and over time fold up like an accordion
(see Figure 3.9). This process has created some of the world’s mightiest mountain ranges, such as
the Alps and the Himalayas. Regions near the boundary where two continent-supporting plates
converge are usually seismically but not volcanically active. Earthquakes are generated at these
boundaries when rock blocks near the boundaries fracture under the high compressional forces
between the colliding plates and slip.
Where plate edges slide past each other, crust is neither created nor destroyed, nor do changes
occur on the surface of the earth (see Figure 3.10). The boundaries where this type of interaction
occurs are often called transform faults. A transform fault develops where the axis of a spreading
ridge or a subduction zone has been offset. As it may be observed from the jagged lines and erratic
curves that identify the spreading ridges and subduction zones in Figure 3.3, transform faults are a
rather common occurrence, a condition brought about by the irregular fracturing of the lithosphere.
The sliding of one plate against another generates earthquake activity but no volcanism. Earth-
quakes in these boundaries typically occur at shallow depths, that is, between 5 and 40 km below
the surface. The San Andreas Fault near the west coast of the United States has been identified
Earthquake Genesis 44

2
0
0
Depth (km)

4
0
0

6
0
0

400 200 0 200

Distance from Niumate, Tonga (km)

FIGURE 3.7 Location of earthquakes that occurred in 1965 under the Tonga Trench in
the Southwest Pacific, delineating a subducting plate that reaches a depth of more than
600 km at an angle of ∼45°. (After Isacks, B., Oliver, J., and Sykes, R.S., Journal of
Geophysical Research, 73, 18, 5855–5899, 1968. © American Geo- physical Union.
Reproduced with permission from American Geophysical Union.)

Trench Coastline Volcano

Lithosphere
Lithosphere
Continental plate

Rising
Oceanic plate

magma

Melted
Asthenosphere plate

FIGURE 3.8 Formation of volcanoes in subduction zones.

as a transform fault. Other important transform faults are the Motagua Fault
that runs from the Caribbean Sea to the mountains west of Guatemala City, the
Alpine Fault in New Zealand, and the Dead Sea Fault that connects the Read
Sea to the Bitlis Mountains in Turkey.
The overall interrelationship between the relative motions of the tectonic
Earthquake Genesis 45

plates, together with some of the most important features on the earth’s
surface, is illustrated in Figure 3.11.