Earth Science: Earthquake Inquiry
NAME_____________________per_____
Question: What determines how destructive an earthquake will be on the surface of the
Earth?
Hypothesis: If EQs from around the world are examined, then we will find that _______
________________________________________________________________________
creates the biggest disasters/most destruction on the Earth’s surface.
You will be assigned an earthquake to study that has caused major devastation
somewhere in the world. You will research its features individually, and together with
others who studied the same one, you will create a short Powerpoint/Keynote
presentation of your data (Monday). After these are presented (end of Wednesday), we
will analyze what we have found and make conclusions about what is really the cause of
destructive earthquakes (by Friday, if all goes well).
Circle the earthquake you will be studying:
Last Name starts with:
Research this Earthquake:
A–D
Kobe, Japan, 1995
E–H
Tangshan, China 1976
I–L
Haiti, 2010
M–Q
Mexico City, 1985
R–U
Tohoku, Japan, 2011
V–Z
Loma Prieta, CA, 1989
Individual research: Please find this information, and cite your sources for each one:
a) exact position - (focus = depth of quake, epicenter = town or city above the focus) and
date
b) magnitude – “size” of the quake: usually Richter, but if you can find Moment
Magnitude, that would be great! Be able to define the magnitude you report.
c) shaking time
d) type of ground that was shaken: hard rock, sediments or “fill” (sand and soil that are
not cemented together) or something else
e) type of fault the quake occurred on (blind thrust, strike/slip, other)
f) distance from the epicenter
g) surface destruction: lives lost, buildings/roads destroyed, cracks in the Earth, etc.
h) population in the area and building types/codes (what did they build with, and were
there rules about how to build a building in the area)
i) any other facts that you found that might help us answer the question
Killer Quake! Notes: Watch the video, and look for these answers. Write during the
video only if you must. Do NOT use your ipad, write on this sheet. Use the internet after
the video if there are answers you (and your table partners) could not find.
1. The quake in the video was epicentered in ________________________________.
2. The flooding and fire came from ________________________________________.
3. The earthquake was magnitude __________________.
4. Aftershocks come after big events. What do earthquake geologists (seismologists) use
them for?
5. What is a blind thrust fault?
6. How did oil geologists help to find blind thrust faults?
7. What is “paleoseismology”?
8. Where is the Elysian Park fault located?