An earthquake is a series of vibrations caused by the sudden rupture or rebounding of rocks in areas where elastic strain accumulates slowly within the Earth's crust.
Different plates make up the Earth's outer layer.
The leaves aren't stationary; they continue to move. Their movement is responsible for the formation of mountains, valleys, volcanic eruptions, and earthquakes. These plates' activity occurs along four distinct borders. The seafloor extends through the divergent boundary, the convergent boundary, the continental slide, the collisional limit, the continental crust, and the transform boundary, the sliding or slipping edge.
Before this class, we have been discussing the plate tectonic theory in details.
In this exercise, I will explore how the natural hazards, such as earthquakes and volcanoes relate to plates of the Earth. I will use the web GIS run by the UNAVCO Facility in Boulder, CO to explore the plate`s activities as well as their location.
Question 1
Earthquakes. Four Regions that have very deep Earthquakes (Greater than 500 km)
The four areas that have very deep earthquakes that exceed 500km as per the web are; the Southwest Pacific (New Zealand), the West South America (The Andes Mountain), Indonesia (Northwest Australia) and New Guinea (Northern Australia).
Sea Floor Spreading and Plate Tectonics
Question 2
Types of Boundaries that Are Found in the Regions Named in Question 1 above.
There are two types of boundaries present in the areas outlined above. The boundary between the plate boundary between New Zealand and Southwest Pacific as well as The Andes and Western South America is a convergent boundary. On the other hand, the boundary between the Northeast Australia and New Guinea as well as that between Indonesia and Northwest Australia is a transform boundary.
Question 3
The Youngest Tectonic Plate Material Found in the Atlantic Ocean.
Plates are also categorized regarding age. In this category, there are young and old plates. The youngest tectonic plate material in the Atlantic Ocean is right around the divergent boundary. The plate runs from north to south and runs almost directly up the center of the Atlantic Ocean. It is roughly halfway between Africa\/ Europe and America.
Question 4
The Oldest Tectonic Plate Material in the Atlantic Ocean and Its Age.
Plates are also categorized regarding age. In this category, there are young and old plates. The oldest tectonic material in the Atlantic Ocean is along the Western coastline of Africa and the Eastern Coastline of North America. According to the information provided on the website, the plate is approximately 154.3 million years old.
Question 5
The Youngest Tectonic Plate Material Found in the Pacific Ocean.
Plates are also categorized regarding age. In this category, there are young and old plates. The youngest tectonic plate located in the Pacific Ocean is along the divergent plate boundary. The plate runs from the north to south of the ocean, and it is just off the western coast of South America.
Question 6
The Oldest Tectonic Plate Material Found in the Pacific Ocean and Its Age.
Plates are also categorized in terms of age. In this category, there are young and old plates. The oldest plate in the Pacific Ocean is in the Western Pacific Rim of the ocean. According to the details provided on the website, the plate is approximately 180 million years old.
Question 7
The Distance Honolulu Will Move in 3000 Years.
The information provided is that Honolulu moves with a speed of 67.50mm/yr. The period given is 3000 years.
If in a year Honolulu moves with a speed of 67.50mm in one year, then in 3000 years the distance moved will be 3000×67.50 which equals to 202,500mm.
1 km is given by 1000000mm, therefore, dividing 202,500 by 1000000 we get about 0.2025 which is approximately 0.203 km in the next 3 million years.
Question 8
The Distance Honolulu Will Move in 3 Million Years.
The information provided is that Honolulu moves with a speed of 67.50mm/yr. The period given is 3 million years.
If in a year Honolulu moves with a speed of 67.50mm in one year, then in 3 million years the distance moved will be 3000000×67.50 which equals to 202,500,000mm.
1 km is given by 1000000mm, therefore, dividing 202,500,000 by 1000000 we get about 202.5 which is approximately 203 km in the next 3 million years.
Question 9
The Speed of San Francisco in the Nearest Hundredth.
Speed is defined as the distance covered by a moving object is a specified period. Plates are always in motion as they move from one place towards another. Different plates have a different moving speed that determines the effects they have as they move. For instance, as per the information provided by the website, the velocity or the speed of movement of San Francisco is 18.37mm/yr.
Question 10
The Speed of Los Angeles.
Speed is defined as the distance covered by a moving object is a specified period. Plates are always in motion as they move from one place towards another. Different plates have a different moving speed that determines the effects they have as they move. For instance as per the information provided by the website, the velocity or the speed of movement of San Francisco is 47.72 mm/yr.
Question 11
Using Page 118 in the Atlas, the Miles Separating San Francisco and Anaheim (in LA).
San Francisco and Anaheim are two areas that are far from each other.
The distance between the two areas is approximately 406 miles.
The two sectors are in motion, and their relative speed is about 1.60934km/mile
To calculate distance between them, we multiply the miles with the relative speed
406 × 1.60934 = approximately 653 kilometers.
Question 12
Based on Your Measurement in #11, the Years It Will Take for San Francisco and Los Angeles to Meet.
Los Angeles and San Francisco are two areas that move towards each other.
Since they are moving toward each other, we add up their speed to calculate the relative speed to cover the distance. Their relative speed as from the website is 66.09 mm/yr. The distance between the two areas is 653 kilometers. Converting this to mm we multiply with 1000000
Therefore, they are 653000000 mm apart from each other. If their speed is 66.09 mm in one year, they will then cover a distance of 653000000 mm by 66.09 × 653000000 which gives 9,980,446 years.
Conclusions
The activity of these plates takes place in four different boundaries. The divergent boundary, where the sea floor spreads, the convergent boundary which is the continental slide, the collisional boundary which is the continental crust and the transform boundary which is the sliding or the slipping edge.
