TXTBK + QA LAS

LEARNING ACTIVITY SHEET No. 3

Textbook based instruction paired in SCIENCE 8
with MELC-Based Quality
Assured Learner’s Activity Sheet
(LAS) Quarter 2 Week 3

Name: _________________________________ Grade & Section: _________________________

Teacher: _______________________________ Date Submitted: __________________________

MELC: Explain how earthquake waves provide information about the interior of the earth.
(S8ES-IIc-17)
Lesson/Topic: Earthquake Waves
Reference/Source: Science 8 Learner’s Material Page No.: 135-136

Key Concepts:

Earthquake Waves

 During an earthquake, the energy released travels, penetrates, and passes through the
earth’s interior in all directions. This energy comes in a form of seismic waves. Seismic comes
from the Greek word “seismo” which means earthquake.
 Thus, earthquake waves give us a picture of the earth’s interior, the way an ultrasound
provides an image of a baby inside the womb. This is why scientists know a bit about the
interior of our home planet, even if no one has gone deep into the Earth yet.

 As seismic waves travel through the body of the Earth, they behave in different ways,
depending on what they encounter along way (Figure 1).

Figure 1. The behavior of seismic waves

revealswhat the Earth looks like inside.

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 Types of Seismic Waves

1. Primary Waves (P-waves)

 Are the fastest seismic waves because they are the first waves detected by the seismograph,
and they can travel at greatest velocity penetrating the gases, fluid (like water and liquid
layers of the earth), and solid rocks. They can pass through the solid rocks at over 225 miles
per hour and through liquid at about one third of that speed. They can travel as fast as 1.6 to
8 km/sec or 1 to 5 miles per second in Earth’s crust.

 This wave is also known as compressional waves or longitudinal waves. It moves

alternately by pushing (compress) and pulling back (dilate) of the rocks in the direction of their
travel (just like sound waves push and pull the air). It can also travel through the earth’s core.

Fig. 2 Body waves can penetrate the earth’s interior

Slideplayer.com

2. Secondary Waves (S-waves)

 Are transverse waves also known as shear waves that follow the P-waves and the
second to arrive at seismic recording station and travel half the speed of P-waves but can
be more dangerous due to larger amplitude causing the ground to rapidly split and move
in different direction.

 These waves can only penetrate the solid materials and so they stop at the liquid layer of
Earth because they depend upon a resistance to shear materials or the property called
rigidity which is absent in a fluid (gas, water, molten rocks, earth’s core. This property of
S-waves led the seismologist to the conclusion that the outer core is liquid. When the
shear waves hits the outer core, the waves disappear, and once they hit the inner core,
they reappear.

How Earthquake Waves Provide Scientists with Information About the Nature and Composition of
the Earth

The following are some of the information which the seismologists have acquired using the seismic
waves to reveal what is inside the earth.

 Seismic waves are generally traveling with depth as they move faster through denser materials.

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 P-waves are known for being the fastest waves, and they arrive first at the seismic station but
become slower when they travel in fluids. Seismic waves are more slower in hot areas. P-waves
moves slowly in partially molten areas of the earth while the S-waves are stopped at this region
because of the shearing motion that cannot be transported through liquids. This only shows the
zone where mantle is closer to its melting point at its depth and pressure and the seismic waves
are the asthenosphere. When a wave arrives late at the seismograph, it means it pass through a
hot and semi-fluid part of the earth.

 S-waves cannot penetrate the Core-Mantle boundary and the P-waves are refracted in the molten
layer of this region of the outer core.

 P-wave velocities suddenly increase upon reaching the inner core which consists of solid
materials and there is no evidence of S-waves.

 The farther away from the epicentre (the earth’s surface), the larger the gap in the time between
the arrival of P and S-waves at the seismic station.

 The “shadow zone” is developing on the opposite side of the earth once the S-waves pass
through the liquid core and where no S-waves are detected.

 Some P-waves are reflected off along the boundary between the inner and the solid core.

Fig. 4 Seismic waves as they travel through the earth

https://images.app.goo.gl/yPFKfKhg4eKTMyHD7

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 Objective/Subtask: 1. Identify whether the seismic wave is a P-wave or S-wave.

Activity No: 1 Title: Waves Reveal! Day: 1

Directions: Fill in the table below to identify P-waves and S-waves. Choose the words or phrases inside
the WORD POOL.

WORD POOL

 Second to arrive at seismic recording station

 Cannot penetrate the Core-Mantle boundary
 The fastest seismic waves because they are the first waves detected by the seismograph
 They can pass through the solid rocks
 They cause more destruction because of the long duration and larger amplitude of the waves.
 Compressional waves or longitudinal waves
 Transverse waves or shear waves
 Reflected off along the boundary between the inner and the solid core.
 Moves perpendicular to the path of wave movement, pushing the rocks and displacing them
outward
 These waves are usually generated when the source of earthquake is from shallow focus or
near the earth’s surface

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 Types of Body waves
Primary Waves (P-waves) Secondary Waves (S-waves)

Objective/Subtask: 2. Determine the types of seismic waves that travel through different layers of the
Earth.

Activity No: 2 Title: Inside the Earth Day: 2

Directions: Label the types of seismic waves that travels the different layers of the Earth (P-waves and
S-waves). Write your answer inside the arrow.

1.

2.

3.

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 Source: https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.sms-tsunami-warning.com

Objective/Subtask: Differentiate the types of Earthquake waves.

Activity No: 3 Title: Types of Seismic Waves Day: 3 & 4

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Directions: Using the given graphic organizer below, write the necessary information to differentiate the
seismic waves.

SEISMIC WAVES

Types

Characteristics Characteristics

Answer key:

Activity 1:
TYPES OF SEISMIC WAVES
Primary Waves (P-waves) Secondary Waves (S-waves)
 The fastest seismic waves  Cannot penetrate the core-mantle boundary
 They can pass through solid rocks  Second to arrive at seismic recording station
 Compressional waves or longitudinal waves  Transverse waves or shear waves
 Reflected along the boundary between the inner  Moves perpendicular to the path of wave
and solid core movement, pushing the rocks and displacing
them outward

Activity 2:

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 Prepared by: EMELIE S. TORIBIO