· Each year the Southern California area has about 10,000 earthquakes.
· The national earthquake information center (NEIC) records an average of 20,000 earthquakes every year.
· Natural events such as volcanic eruptions and meteor impacts can cause earthquakes; movement of the earth’s plates triggers the majority of naturally occurring earthquakes.
· The earth’s surface consists of 20 constantly moving plates.
· In Japan mythology, a giant catfish called Namazu is responsible for earthquakes.
· In ancient Greece, people believed that the god of the sea, Poseidon, caused earthquakes. When he was angry, Poseidon would strike the ground with his trident and set off an earthquake. His unpredictable, violent behavior earned him the nickname “Earth-Shaker.
· More earthquakes happen in the Northern Hemisphere than in the Southern Hemisphere.
· The 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake lasted nearly 10 minutes—the longest on record
· Nearly 80% of Earth’s largest earthquakes occur near the “Ring of Fire,” which is a horseshoe-shaped region in the Pacific Ocean where many tectonic plates meet. The second-most earthquake-prone area is a region called the Alpide Belt, which includes countries such as Turkey, India, and Pakistan
· Earthquakes occur only in the Earth’s crust. Deep earthquakes originate in crust that is sliding down beneath another tectonic plate. The most devastating earthquakes are those that are strong and shallow with the focus point less than 20 miles (32 km) underground and that occur in highly populated areas.
· The ancient Greeks believed that earthquakes were caused by winds rushing out from caves inside Earth
· The national earthquake information center (NEIC) records an average of 20,000 earthquakes every year.
· Natural events such as volcanic eruptions and meteor impacts can cause earthquakes; movement of the earth’s plates triggers the majority of naturally occurring earthquakes.
· The earth’s surface consists of 20 constantly moving plates.
· In Japan mythology, a giant catfish called Namazu is responsible for earthquakes.
· In ancient Greece, people believed that the god of the sea, Poseidon, caused earthquakes. When he was angry, Poseidon would strike the ground with his trident and set off an earthquake. His unpredictable, violent behavior earned him the nickname “Earth-Shaker.
· More earthquakes happen in the Northern Hemisphere than in the Southern Hemisphere.
· The 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake lasted nearly 10 minutes—the longest on record
· Nearly 80% of Earth’s largest earthquakes occur near the “Ring of Fire,” which is a horseshoe-shaped region in the Pacific Ocean where many tectonic plates meet. The second-most earthquake-prone area is a region called the Alpide Belt, which includes countries such as Turkey, India, and Pakistan
· Earthquakes occur only in the Earth’s crust. Deep earthquakes originate in crust that is sliding down beneath another tectonic plate. The most devastating earthquakes are those that are strong and shallow with the focus point less than 20 miles (32 km) underground and that occur in highly populated areas.
· The ancient Greeks believed that earthquakes were caused by winds rushing out from caves inside Earth