Ground Shaking
Ground Shaking
Ground Shaking
VOCABULARY WORDS
• Frequency- how often the vibration occur. The unit of measurement is
hertz(Hz) or cycles per second. The product of wavelength and frequency is
velocity.
• Natural frequency- the frequency at which a system naturally vibrates once
it has been set into motion. The natural frequency depends on the stiffness
and mass of the system.
• Period- the time (in seconds) it takes for one full cycle to occur. The period is
equal to the reciprocal for frequency (1/frequency).
• Acceleration- is the rate of change of velocity expressed as a ratio of the
acceleration of gravity.
•Earthquake ground shaking is the
movement of the Earth’s surface
produced by seismic waves that are
generated when an earthquake occurs
(adapted from USGS, no date).
The result of rapid ground acceleration.
Ground shaking can vary over an area
as a result of factors such as
topography, bedrock type and the
location and orientation of the fault
rupture.
•An earthquake generates seismic waves
that penetrate the Earth as body waves
(P & S) or travel as surface waves
(Love and Rayleigh). Each wave has a
characteristic speed and style of
motion.
ELASTIC REBOUND THEORY
• Suggests that elastic strain energy builds up in the
deforming rocks on either side of the fault
1) Until it overcomes the resistance posed by any irregularity
on the fault plane. When the slippage does occur, energy is
released. The elastic energy released is transported by
seismic waves that travel throughout the earth.
2) As vibrations.
PRIMARY (P-WAVE)
-the primary body wave; the first
seismic wave detected by
seismographs; able to move through
both liquid and solid rock.
• Seismic Wave Motions—4 waves animated- Incorporated Research Institutions for Seismology (iris.edu)
SECONDARY (S-WAVE)
-secondary body waves that oscillate the ground
perpendicular to the direction of wave travel. They
travel about 1.7 times slower than P waves.
Because liquids will not sustain shear stresses, S
waves will not travel through liquids like water,
molten rock, or the Earth’s outer core. S waves
produce vertical and horizontal motion in the
ground surface.
RAYLEIGH WAVES
-surface waves that move in an
elliptical motion, producing both a
vertical and horizontal component of
motion in the direction of wave
propagation.
LOVE WAVES