Evriting Abaotem Earthquake

“FROM IUMI GETIUS TUMAS FOR LIVE LONG GRAON WEA NO SAVVE MUV, TAEM HEM START FOR SEKSEK MIND BILONG IUMI SEK FOGUD.”​—“THE VIOLENT EARTH.”

“EARTHQUAKE hem wanfala long olketa strong paoa bilong nature wea savve kosim wei for distroe,” hem nao samting wea The World Book Encyclopedia talem. Disfala toktok hem barava tru, from energy wea kamaot from wanfala big earthquake savve 10,000 taems big winim energy bilong first atom bomb! Nara samting wea mekem man fraet hem wei wea olketa earthquake savve happen long eni ples, eni season, and long enitaem. And nomata olketa scientist maet savve wea nao strongfala earthquake savve happen, olketa no savve talem taem wea bae diswan happen.

Olketa earthquake kamap from wei wea staka andanit long graon olketa mumuv. Diskaen wei for mumuv hem go ahed olowe. Planti taem, olketa seismic wave wea kamap from diswan hem no strong fitim man feelim long antap long earth, bat olketa savve markem and recordim long wanfala seismograph.a Long olketa narataem, sapos planti rok hem brek and muv hem bae barava sesekem graon antap long earth.

Bat why nao earth hem mumuv olowe? “Iumi bae savve minim diswan taem iumi lukluk long plate tectonics, hem wanfala idea wea barava changem tingting abaotem science bilong Earth,” hem nao samting wea National Earthquake Information Center (NEIC) hem sei. “Distaem mifala savve hao sevenfala main plate nao stap, wea divaed long samfala smolfala plate moa,” NEIC sei moa, “evriwan hia go ahed for mumuv tugeta, long speed olsem 10 go kasem 130 millimeter evri year.” NEIC sei, planti earthquake, kamap nomoa long ples wea tufala plate meet tugeta. Long hia nao 90 percent long olketa bigfala earthquake savve happen.

Size and Strong

For markem hao big nao wanfala earthquake olketa bae measurem size and strong bilong hem. Long olketa year bilong 1930, Charles Richter wakem wanfala scale for measurem size bilong olketa earthquake. Taem namba bilong olketa seismograph station hem grow, olketa wakem olketa niu scale from olketa idea bilong Richter. Olsem example, samting wea olketa kolem moment magnitude scale, hem savve measurem energy wea kamaot from ples wea earthquake hem happen.

Tru nao, olketa scale hia no evritaem showimaot haomas samting nao distroe from wanfala earthquake. Tingim wanfala earthquake long north Bolivia long June 1994, wea size bilong hem  8.2, wea olketa sei hem kosim faevfala pipol nomoa for dae. Bat, datfala 1976 earthquake long Tangshan, China—wea size bilong hem 8.0—hem killim dae planti handred thousand pipol!

Long wei wea difren from size, wei for measurem strong bilong earthquake savve showim hao nao hem affectim pipol, olketa building, and environment. Disfala wei for measurem strong bilong wanfala earthquake hem moa klia for iumi minim. For tok stret, earthquake seleva no spoelem pipol. Bat samting wea diswan kosim, olsem wei for olketa wall foldaon, gas bosta, electric paoa laen brek, olketa samting foldaon, and kaen samting olsem nao savve mekem man garekil and savve killim man dae.

Wanfala goal bilong olketa wea measurem olketa earthquake hem for provaedem warning abaotem olketa earthquake. Olketa go ahed for wakem wanfala digital program wea olketa kolem Advanced Seismic Research and Monitoring System. Wanfala report long CNN sei hao disfala digital program system—witim fast wei for kasem information and olketa strongfala computer program—bae helpem olketa bigman “for savve kwiktaem wanem ples nao earthquake barava sekem.” From diswan, bae hem moa isi for gavman for sendem help long olketa area wea diswan hem affectim.

Tru nao, wei for prepare for wanfala earthquake savve katem daon wei for garekil, and katem daon wei wea hem savve spoelem property and—moa important—sevem olketa laef. Nomata olsem, olketa earthquake go ahed for happen. So kwestin hem kamap: Hao nao pipol bin kasem help for deal witim samting wea kamap bihaen wanfala earthquake?

[Footnote]

[Chart long page 5]

(Lukim pablikeson for olketa nara information)

Haomas Earthquake?

Size Strong Average Evri Year

Barava Strong Tumas 8 and go ap 1

Strong Fogud 7-7.9 18

Strong 6-6.9 120

Big 5-5.9 800

No Mas Big 4-4.9 6,200*

Smol 3-3.9 49,000*

Barava Smol <3.0 Size 2-3:

samting olsem 1,000 evriday

Size 1-2:

samting olsem 8,000 evriday

* Estimate.

[Credit Line]

Source: National Earthquake Information Center By permission of USGS/National Earthquake Information Center, USA

[Credit Line long page 5]

Seismogram on pages 4 and 5: Figure courtesy of the Berkeley Seismological Laboratory