WGHS Science Dept Explain California Earthquake

(photo by Mario Tama/Getty images)

On April 13, 2024 The people of California faced a 3.8 earthquake due to sudden movements along earth’s fault lines. Our Science Department weighs in on the heavy movement of the tectonic plates.
by Ari Carreon

Why does California face earthquakes?
California was faced with yet another earthquake. California faces about 10,000 a year. A lot of them are minor earthquakes, but others can be catastrophic. Mrs. Dorota Hang, who teaches Biology and Chemistry said, “California experiences more earthquakes than places like Georgia because it sits along the boundary of the Pacific and North American tectonic plates, where there is significant tectonic activity and numerous faults.”

How earthquakes are formed?
A lot of people do not know how earthquakes actually happen. Mrs. April Amos, who is an AP science teacher here at WGHS said, “Earthquakes tend to (but not always) happen from sudden movements along fault lines or plate boundaries within the earth's crust. At these fault lines the plates move in a side-to-side transform movement which releases this stored up energy in the form of seismic waves.“ This could be compared to dropping a rock in a body of water and seeing how the waves ripple.

(image courtesy of Tribonet.org)

Can we predict earthquakes?
Earthquakes can be unpredictable and unexpected as well. Mrs. Hang said, “While scientists can't predict exactly when and where earthquakes will occur, they can assess seismic hazards and probabilities based on historical data, fault mapping, and monitoring of seismic activity.” So not even scientists can know exactly when or where a catastrophic earthquake will happen. It can happen anywhere, similar to the earthquake that happened in New York.

Earthquakes are a natural disaster that can damage buildings and hurt people. They can cause other natural disasters like Tsunamis and Landslides. California unfortunately faces many earthquakes, but the people of California stay strong and keep going on.