Eathquakes An earthquake is a naturally induced shaking of the ground, caused by the fracture of rock within the Earth and the resulting sliding of rocks past one another along a geological fault The sudden movement of rocks along a fault causes vibrations that transmit energy through the earth in the form of waves. Waves that travel in the rocks below the surface of the earth are called body waves, and there are two types …showed first 75 words of 393 total…

…showed last 75 words of 393 total…waves, named after British geophysicist A. E. H. Love. Surface waves also cause damage to structures, as they shake the ground underneath the foundations of buildings and other structures. This type of surface wave, the Love wave, causes rock to move horizontally, or side to side at right angles to the direction of the traveling wave, with no vertical displacements. Love waves alway travel slower than P waves and usually travel slower than S waves.