Earthquake and Volcanoe

Endogenic forces sometimes produce slow movements.sudden movements like earthquaks and volcanoes cause mass destruction over the surface of thr earth.

A volcanoe is a vent { Opening } in the earth's crust through which molten material erupts suddenly.

                A Volcanoe

Similarly,when the Lithosphere plates move ,the surface of the earth vibrates.The vibrations can travel all round the earth.These vibrations are called earthquakes . The place in the crust where the movement starts is called the  focus . The place on the surface above the focus is called the epicentre . Vibrations travel outwards from the epicentre as waves.Greatest damage is usually closest to the epicentre and the strength of the earthquake decreases away form the centre.

       Orgin of an Earthquake

Although earthquakes cannot be predicted, the impact can certainly be minimised if we are prepared before-hand.

    Some common earthquake prediction methods adopted locally by people include studying animal behavior; fish in the ponds get agitated,snakes come to the surface.

There are three types of earthquake waves 

Earthquake Preparedness

An earthquake is measured with a machine called a seismograph.The magnitude of the earthquake is measured on the Richter scale.An earthquake of 2.0 or less can be felt only a little. An earthquake over 5.0 can cause damage from things falling. A 6.0 or higher magnitude is considered very strong and 7.0 is classified as a major earthquake.

               A seismograph

 

          Earthquake images