What is Normal?

The term, 'normal fault' actually comes from coal mining, but more about that later. A fault, which is
a rupture in the earth's crust, is described as a normal fault when one side of the fault moves
downward with respect to the other side. The opposite of this, in which one side moves up, is called
a reverse fault. To remember what a normal fault is, think about it this way: it seems more normal
for earth to slide down (because of gravity) than it is for it to go up. Earth moving down is normal;
moving up is reverse.

Hanging Wall and Footwall

We have terminology for the two sides of a fault. In a normal fault, the side that slides downward has
a shape that makes it look like it is reaching, or hanging, out over the side, so we call it the hanging
wall. The other side is shaped a little bit like a foot. We call that the footwall. The hanging wall slides
down the footwall.

In this picture of a normal fault, the valley is the hanging wall and the mountain is the footwall.
The motion between the two is not always smooth, and sometimes the walls get caught on each
other. Pressure builds up and can be released with a great amount of energy, producing an
earthquake. These are less common than earthquakes produced by strike-slip faults, which move
past each other horizontally instead of vertically. The San Andreas Fault in California is an example
of a strike-slip fault.
NORMAL FAULT EXAMPLE
Independence Valley fault system

The Independence Valley fault system is a group of interrelated normal faults located in
northeastern Nevada in the United States. The fault system is characteristic of faulting throughout
the Great Basin region.

2008 Wells earthquake

A strong 6.0 magnitude earthquake occurred on the morning of February 21, 2008 just northeast of
the town of Wells, Nevada, causing moderate damage, mainly to older brick buildings. The quake
was centered on one of the faults of the Independence Valley fault system, about nine kilometers
(5.6 miles) beneath the surface.

EARTHQUAKE EXAMPLE:
1956 Amorgos earthquake
The 1956 Amorgos earthquake occurred at 03:11 UTC on July 9. It had a magnitude
of 7.7 on the moment magnitude scale and a maximum perceived intensity of IX on
the Mercalli intensity scale. The epicentre was to the south of the island of Amorgos, the
easternmost island of the Cyclades in the Aegean Sea. There was significant damage
on Amorgos and the neighbouring island of Santorini. It was the largest earthquake in
Greece in the 20th century.[1] It was followed 13 minutes later by a magnitude 7.2
earthquake near Santorini. It triggered a major tsunami with a maximum run-up of 30 m.
The combined effects of the earthquake shaking and the tsunami caused the deaths of
53 people with a further 100 injured.
Tectonic setting
The Cyclades island group lies within a zone of extensional tectonics in
the Aegean Sea Plate, between the South Aegean Volcanic Arc to the
south and the continuation of the North Anatolian Fault to the north. The
extension is a result of the bulging out of the Hellenic arc due to flat-slab
subduction of the African Plate.

Earthquake
The earthquake's focal mechanism is consistent with normal faulting,
trending SW-NE. From the distribution of aftershocks, it is possible to
discriminate between the two nodal planes implied by the focal mechanism,
indicating that the fault plane dips to the southeast at about 25°. The
rupture area is estimated to be about 110 km along strike and 26 km in
depth, extending into the upper mantle.