Understanding Faults and Earthquakes

OBJECTIVES
This session is intended to extensively update the understanding

of Science Teachers regarding essential concepts about faults
and earthquakes. Participants should be able to develop an
understanding of the relationship between faults and
earthquakes.
Specifically,
1. Give the difference between:
a. epicenter of an earthquake from its focus;
b. intensity of an earthquake from its magnitude;
and
c. active and inactive faults;
2. Explain how earthquake waves provide information
about the interior of the Earth.
DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
LET’S GET STARTED
1. Watch the short video of a news clip.
2. Think of this, what do you feel if you are living within these
areas? Play
Youtube video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F7wpQx3bYX4

LET’S DO THIS: ACTIVITY 1
FAULT MODEL
1. Color the fault model that is included
according to the color key provided.
2. Paste or glue the fault model onto a
piece of folder or cartolina.
3. Cut out the fault model and fold each
side down to form a box with the
drawn features on top.
4. Tape or glue the corners together. This
box is a three-dimensional model of
the top layers of the Earth's crust.
5. The dashed lines on your model
represent a fault. Carefully cut along
the dashed lines. You will end up with
two pieces. Tape or glue a piece of
construction paper on the side of the
two fault blocks along the fault face.
HOW DID IT HAPPEN? ACTIVITY 1
6. Slide Block A upward while keeping B
stationary.
a.Which way did point B move relative to
point A?
b.What happened to rock layers X, Y and Z?
c. Are the rock layers still continuous?
d.What would likely happen to the river? the
road? the railroad tracks?
e. What landform could have been formed?
7. Slide Block B upward while keeping A
stationary.
point A?
e. What landform could have been formed?
8. Slide Block A sideward while keeping B
stationary.
point A?
ANSWER THESE QUESTIONS
 What happens to the layer as one of the blocks
is moved?
Fractures are formed near the boundaries of the blocks
Fault is a fracture along which the blocks of crust on either
side have moved relative to one another parallel to the
fracture.
 What landforms could it have formed?
lakes, valleys, and plateaus
Types of faults
 Normal faults are formed along divergent boundaries.
 Thrust faults are formed along convergent boundaries.
 Strike-slip faults are formed along transform
boundaries.
WHAT’S IN A FAULT?
Illustration 1
 Describe the picture.
 Is it related to the video shown earlier?
WHAT’S IN A FAULT?
Answer the following questions
1. What can you see in the

two illustrations?
2. How are the two
illustrations similar?
Different?
3. What do the red lines in
the first illustration
indicate?
4. Why are there fractures
in the second
illustration?
Illustration 2
AN EARTHQUAKE SCENARIO
Play
FOCUS AND EPICENTER
PICTURE 1:
Broken windshield
PICTURE 2:
Diagram of the Main
Features of an
Earthquake
FOCUS AND EPICENTER
ANSWER THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS:
1. Compare the picture of the
broken windshield with the
diagram of the main features of
an earthquake.
2. Identify the parts shown in the
diagram.
3. What can you see in the two
illustrations?
4. Can you identify from the
illustrations the main features
of an earthquake?
FOCUS AND EPICENTER
The focus is the point within The epicenter is a
the earth where seismic location on the
waves originate. earth's surface
It is the part of the fault that directly above the
has the greatest movement. focus.
The fault plane is

the flat surface
along which there
is slip (fault) during
an earthquake.
ACTIVE and INACTIVE FAULTS
Earthquake faults are caused by the movement of Earth's lithospheric

plate. Active faults have the ability to generate earthquakes while
inactive faults can no longer produce earthquakes.
EARTHQUAKES AND FAULTS: ACTIVITY 2
DO THE FOLLOWING
1. Tape several matching sheets of sandpaper together to form
a long strip with smooth connections between each sheet.
2. Tack the strip onto the wooden board.
3. Attach a rubber band to the block (through the eyehook as
shown).
4. Place the block on one end of the strip of sandpaper and
place a weight on top of the block.
Refer to the set-up below:
DO THE FOLLOWING
5. Place the meterstick along the strip of sandpaper, starting at the
edge of the block.
6. Advance the end of the rubber band slowly and record both the
position of block edge and time.
7. Repeat for 3 additional trials using more rubber bands, different
types of sandpaper, or weight on top of the block.
ANSWER THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS
1. In the activity, what does the block of wood represent?
2. What does the rubber band represent?
3. What does the sand paper represent?
4. What does the moving block represent?
5. Record the distance traveled by the block with respect to
time.
6. Plot the distance vs time and describe.
a. Does the block always move the same distance with
each jump in motion?
7. Predict what will happen when we pull the block along a
strip with varying sandpaper types.
8. Explain how the activity might model the cause of real
earthquake.
EARTHQUAKE MODEL
Play
EARTHQUAKE
Earthquake is the
sudden shaking of
the Earth that
occurs when
energy is released
when the
lithosphere or
tectonic plates
move.
How STRONG is the
EARTHQUAKE?
PHIVOLCS EARTHQUAKE INTENSITY SCALE (PEIS)
 Perceptible to people only under

favorable circumstances
 Delicately balanced objects are disturbed
slightly
 Still water in containers oscillate slowly
 Felt by few individuals at rest

indoors
 Hanging objects swing slightly
 Still water in containers
oscillates noticeably
 Felt by many people indoors especially in upper

floors of buildings
 Vibration is felt like the passing of a light truck
 Dizziness and nausea are experienced by some
people
 Hanging objects swing moderately
 Still water in containers oscillate moderately
 Felt generally by people indoors and by some people outdoors
 Light sleepers are awakened
 Vibration is felt like the passing of a heavy truck
 Hanging objects swing considerably
 Dinner plates, glasses, windows, and doors rattle
 Floors and walls of wood-framed

buildings creak
 Standing motor cars may rock slightly
 Liquids in containers are slightly
disturbed
 Water in containers oscillate strongly
 Rumbling sound may sometimes be
heard
 Generally felt by most people indoors

and outdoors
 Many sleeping people are awakened
 Some are frightened/ Some run
outdoors
 Strong shaking and rocking felt
throughout any building
 Hanging objects swing violently
 Dining utensils clatter and clink / Some
are broken
 Small, light, unstable objects may fall

or overturn
 Liquid spills from filled open
containers
 Standing vehicles rock noticeably
 Shaking of leaves and twigs are
noticeable
 Many people are frightened / Many run outdoors

 Some people lose their balance
 Motorists feel like driving with flat tires
 Heavy objects or furniture move or may be shifted
 Small church bells may ring
 Wall plaster may crack

 Very old or poorly built houses and man-made structures are
slightly damaged although well-built structures are not
affected
 Limited rockfalls and rolling boulders occur in hilly to
mountainous areas and escarpments
 Trees are noticeably shaken
 Most people are frightened and run outdoors

 People find it difficult to stand in upper floors
 Heavy objects and furniture overturn and topple
 Big church bells may ring
 Old or poorly built structures suffer considerable damage
 Some well-built structures are slightly damaged
 Some cracks may appear on dikes, fish ponds, road surface or concrete
hollow block walls
 Limited liquefaction, lateral spreading and landslides are observed
 Liquefaction is a process by which loose saturated sand lose strength
during an earthquake and behave like liquid
 Trees are shaken strongly
 People panic
 People find it difficult to stand even outdoors
 Many well-built buildings are considerably damaged
 Concrete dikes and foundation of bridges are destroyed by ground
settling or toppling
 Railway tracks are bent or broken
 Tombstones may be displaced, twisted or overturned
 Utility posts, towers, and monuments may tilt or topple
 Water and sewer pipes may be bent, twisted or broken
 Liquefaction and lateral spreading cause man-made structures to sink,
tilt or topple
 Numerous landslides and rockfalls occur in mountainous and hilly areas
 Boulders are thrown out from their positions particularly near the
epicenter
 Fissures and faults rupture
 People are forcibly thrown to the ground

 Many cry and shake with fear
 Most buildings are totally damaged
 Bridges and elevated concrete structures are toppled and destroyed
 Numerous utility posts, towers, and monument are tilted, toppled or
broken
 Water sewer pipes are bent, twisted or broken
 Landslides and liquefaction with lateral spreadings and sandboils
are widespread
 The ground is distorted into undulations
 Trees are shaken very violently with some toppled or broken
 Boulders are commonly thrown out
 River water splashes violently on slops over dikes and banks
 Practically all man-made structures are

destroyed
 Massive landslides and liquefaction
 Large-scale subsidence and uplift of land forms
 Many ground fissures are observed
 Changes in river courses and destructive seiches
in large lakes occur
 Many trees are toppled, broken and uprooted
ANSWER THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS:

1. What were described
in the Philippine
Earthquake Intensity
Scale (PEIS)?
2. How was the SCALE
devised?
3. How is the strength of
an earthquake
shown?
1. Philippine Earthquake Intensity Scale (PEIS) gives the
qualitative description of how strong the earthquake is.
2. The MAGNITUDE is a quantitative measure of its strength
in terms of the energy released.
The INTENSITY of an earthquake is measured in terms of
damage caused by it at a particular location
3. Magnitude of an earthquake is a measure of its size,
while intensity is an indicator of the severity of the
damage at a certain area or location caused by it.
4. Intensity decreases with epicenter. (the farther the
epicenter from the area, the less intense and less strong
the earthquake is)
A seismometer detects the vibrations caused by

an earthquake which are plotted by a
seismograph.
The strength, or
magnitude, of an
earthquake is
measured using
the Richter scale.
The Richter scale is
numbered 0-10.
How was the Philippine Earthquake Intensity Scale
described?
The PHIVOLCS Earthquake Intensity Scale (PEIS)
describes:
 how an earthquake is felt in a certain area,
based on the relative effects of an
earthquake on structures and surroundings.
 It is represented by Roman numerals with
Intensity I as the weakest and Intensity X the
strongest. It has been used since 1996,
replacing the Rossi-Forel scale.
The Rossi–Forel scale was one of the first seismic scales to
describe earthquake intensities. It was developed by Michele
Stefano Conte de Rossi of Italy and François-
Alphonse Forel of Switzerland in the late 19th century. It was
used for about two decades until the introduction of the
Mercalli intensity scale in 1902.
MERCALLI vs RICHTER
Mercalli Scale Richter Scale
Measures The effects caused by The energy released by the
earthquake earthquake
Measuring Tool Observation Seismograph
Quantified from observation Base-10 logarithmic scale
Calculation of effect on earth’s surface, obtained by calculating
human, objects and man- logarithm of the amplitude of
made structures waves.
From 2.0 to 10.0+ (never

I (not felt) to XII (total recorded). A 3.0 earthquake is
Scale
destruction) 10 times stronger than a 2.0
earthquake.
Varies at different distances

Consistency Varies depending on distance from the epicenter, but one
from epicenter value is given for the earthquake
as a whole.
EARTH’S INTERIOR
Explain how earthquake waves provide information
about the interior of the Earth.
EARTH’S INTERIOR & SEISMIC WAVES
Activity 3: SEISMIC SLINKY
1. Divide participants into 5 groups and provide them a slinky and
a masking tape.
2. Instruct the pairs to mark a spot on their slinky near the center
with masking tape at the top of the loop.
3. Ask the two participants hold each end of the slinky. Stretch out
the slinky along the floor.
4. Tell the participants to take turn in compressing 15 coils and
then releasing them rapidly while they hold the end of the
slinky, making sure to observe the energy wave travel the length
of the slinky.
 Describe your observations of the coil and tape.

 What kind of seismic wave this slinky motion represents?
Activity 3: SEISMIC SLINKY
1. Tie one end of a 3-meter rope to the door knob of the room.
2. Ask one participant to hold the free end of the rope.
3. Ask the participant to back away from the door until the
rope is straight with a little slack and shake the rope up and
down.
 What can you say about the motion of the rope?

 What kind of seismic wave this resembles?
Activity 4: SEISMIC WAVES VELOCITY
1. Analyze the graph showing velocities
of seismic waves at varying depth.
2. Label each of the zones to show how
the wave velocity changes
(example write “wave velocity
increasing”)
 What do you think causes such change

in wave velocity?
 Why does S-wave velocity drop to zero
at a depth of 2900 km?
 Describe the properties of the different
layers of the earth based from the
changes in the seismic velocity.
EARTH’S INTERIOR
Recordings of seismic waves from
earthquakes led to the discovery of
the Earth’s interior.
Seismic waves generated by an
earthquake source are commonly
classified into three main types.
Body waves
 Primary waves (P – waves)
 Secondary waves (S – waves)
Surface Waves
 Love and Rayleigh waves
EARTH’S INTERIOR
Body waves Surface Waves
 Primary waves (P – waves)  Love waves
 Secondary waves (S – waves)  Rayleigh waves
Characteristics of SEISMIC WAVES
o Primary or P-waves pass
through liquid and solid
o Secondary or S-waves
pass only through solid
and not through liquid.
P-waves travel faster than S-waves.

The time gap in the arrival of P-wave and S-wave
can give the estimate of the distance to the
earthquake.
VIDEO: 3D SEISMIC WAVES
Play
THANK YOU!

Understanding Faults and Earthquakes

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OBJECTIVES

This session is intended to extensively update the understanding

Youtube video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F7wpQx3bYX4

1. What can you see in the

The fault plane is

Earthquake faults are caused by the movement of Earth's lithospheric

 Perceptible to people only under

 Felt by few individuals at rest

 Felt by many people indoors especially in upper

 Floors and walls of wood-framed

 Generally felt by most people indoors

 Small, light, unstable objects may fall

 Many people are frightened / Many run outdoors

 Wall plaster may crack

 Most people are frightened and run outdoors

 People are forcibly thrown to the ground

 Practically all man-made structures are

ANSWER THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS:

A seismometer detects the vibrations caused by

From 2.0 to 10.0+ (never

Varies at different distances

 Describe your observations of the coil and tape.

 What can you say about the motion of the rope?

 What do you think causes such change

P-waves travel faster than S-waves.

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