How does an earthquake occur?
When the enormous forces in the earth's interior are also felt on the surface through an earthquake, humanity realizes that it is still subject to these primal forces in the 21st century. Century can do little to counter it. Explaining these natural disasters to children and teaching them how to behave during them is not easy. You can find some tips for this in the following article.
What is an earthquake?
Worldwide Most earthquakes occur in regions where at least two plates move in different directions. If the plates slide past each other, their rock can get caught. These only move a few centimeters per year. Because of the gigantic masses, enormous tensions build up there over time. At some point the rock cracks and makes up for the missed movement in a few seconds and minutes.
Such an earthquake can cause devastating damage even at greater distances. Ultimately, the earthquake waves spread around 12,000 - 13,000 km in a single hour. In addition to such tectonic earthquakes, volcanic eruptions or collapsing cavities in mining regions can also trigger earthquakes.
Errors in drilling for geothermal power plants or fracking to extract natural gas and oil can also cause significant shocks.
How can the phenomenon be illustrated?
Because we cannot look underground, the example of boiling milk can help us imagine the process of an earthquake:
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If you bring milk to the boil in a pot and then let it cool, a thin skin forms on its surface. If you then carefully move the milk, i.e. set the liquid in motion, the milk membrane tears open or shrinks in other places.
This is exactly what happens to the earth's crust. Just on a much larger scale. Earthquakes occur in places where the skin tears apart or shifts. These places are also called fracture zones. But they don't just have to be on the edges of the plate. Sometimes a closed panel tears open.
Most of the time the plates get stuck at a depth of several kilometers and not directly on the earth's surface. Scientists call this the earthquake focus or the hypocenter. The earthquake is strongest on the earth's surface above this earthquake source, at the so-called epicenter.
Where does the earth shake?
Earthquakes cannot be predicted accurately. However, there are risk maps that are developed by scientists. These maps indicate how likely it is that an earthquake will occur in a specific area within a specified period of time. There are areas on earth where the risk of earthquakes is greater than anywhere else.
What school materials are there on the subject of earthquakes?
There are numerous worksheets that you can use to explain everything about earthquakes to your child or a school class in an age-appropriate and visual way.
The ones from are particularly popular Youth + Education, in which the children discover together with Max and Flocke why, when and how earthquakes can occur.
