In some areas of the world, like California and Japan, earthquakes are a common occurrence. How can this best be explained?
Answers
Answer:
Where continental plates meet is where volcanic activity is.
Explanation:
Japan
A magnitude-7.0 earthquake struck southern Japan today, less than two days after a 6.2-magnitude temblor rocked the same region, triggering tsunami advisories in the area.
The most recent earthquake struck the Kumamoto region on Japan's Kyushu Island early Saturday (April 16) at 1:25 a.m. local time (12:25 p.m. ET on April 15), according to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). The smaller 6.2-magnitude quake on Thursday (April 14) killed nine people and injured hundreds more, reported CBS News.
With residents of the Kumamoto region reeling from two sizable earthquakes in as many days, and with memories of the massive 9.0-magnitude earthquake and tsunami that devastated Tohoku, Japan, in 2011 not far from people's minds, what is it about this part of the world that makes it so seismically active? [The 10 Biggest Earthquakes in History]
For starters, Japan is located along the so-called Pacific Ring of Fire, which is the most active earthquake belt in the world. This "ring" is actually an imaginary horseshoe-shaped zone that follows the rim of the Pacific Ocean, where many of the world's earthquakes and volcanic eruptions occur.
California
The earthquakes of California are caused by the movement of huge blocks of the earth's crust- the Pacific and North American plates. The Pacific plate is moving northwest, scraping horizontally past North America at a rate of about 50 millimeters (2 inches) per year. About two-thirds of this movement occurs on the San Andreas fault and some parallel faults- -- the San Jacinto, Elsinore, and Imperial faults (see map). Over time, these faults produce about half of the significant earthquakes of our region, as well as many minor earthquakes.