Earthquake is a shaking of the ground caused by the sudden breaking and shifting of large sections of Earth’s rocky outer shell. Earthquakes are among the most powerful events on earth, and their results can be terrifying. A severe earthquake may release energy 10,000 times as great as that of the first atomic bomb. Rock movements during an earthquake can make rivers change their course. Earthquakes can trigger landslides that cause great damage and loss of life. Large earthquakes beneath the ocean can create a series of huge, destructive waves called tsunamis (tsoo NAH meez)that flood coasts for many miles.
Earthquakes almost never kill people directly. Instead, many deaths and injuries result from falling objects and the collapse of buildings, bridges, and other structures. Fire resulting from broken gas or power lines is another major danger during a quake. Spills of hazardous chemicals are also a concern during an earthquake.
The force of an earthquake depends on how much rock breaks and how far it shifts. Powerful earthquakes can shake firm ground violently for great distances. During minor earthquakes, the vibration may be no greater than the vibration caused by a passing truck.
On average, a powerful earthquake occurs less than once every two years. At least 40 moderate earthquakes cause damage somewhere in the world each year. Scientists estimate that more than 8,000 minor earthquakes occur each day without causing any damage. Of those, only about 1,100 are strong enough to be felt.
How an earthquake begins: Most earthquakes occur along a fault — a fracture in Earth’s rocky outer shell where sections of rock repeatedly slide past each other. Faults occur in weak areas of Earth’s rock. Most faults lie beneath the surface of Earth, but some, like the San Andreas Fault in California, are visible on the surface. Stresses in Earth cause large blocks of rock along a fault to strain, or bend. When the stress on the rock becomes great enough, the rock breaks and snaps into a new position, causing the shaking of an earthquake.
Earthquakes usually begin deep in the ground. The point in Earth where the rocks first break is called the focus, also known as the hypocenter, of the quake. The focus of most earthquakes lies less than 45 miles (72 kilometers) beneath the surface, though the deepest known focuses have been nearly 450 miles (700 kilometers) below the surface. The point on the surface of Earth directly above the focus is known as the epicenter of the quake. The strongest shaking is usually felt near the epicenter.
From the focus, the break travels like a spreading crack along the fault. The speed at which the fracture spreads depends on the type of rock. It may average about 2 miles (3.2 kilometers) per second in granite or other strong rock. At that rate, a fracture may spread more than 350 miles (560 kilometers) in one direction in less than three minutes. As the fracture extends along the fault, blocks of rock on one side of the fault may drop down below the rock on the other side, move up and over the other side, or slide forward past the other.
How an earthquake spreads: When an earthquake occurs, the violent breaking of rock releases energy that travels through Earth in the form of vibrations called seismic waves. Seismic waves move out from the focus of an earthquake in all directions. As the waves travel away from the focus, they grow gradually weaker. For this reason, the ground generally shakes less farther away from the focus.
There are two chief kinds of seismic waves: (1) body waves and (2) surface waves. Body waves, the fastest seismic waves, move through Earth. Slower surface waves travel along the surface of Earth.
Body waves tend to cause the most earthquake damage. There are two kinds of body waves: (1) compressional waves and (2) shear waves. As the waves pass through Earth, they cause particles of rock to move in different ways. Compressional waves push and pull the rock. They cause buildings and other structures to contract and expand. Shear waves make rocks move from side to side, and buildings shake. Compressional waves can travel through solids, liquids, or gases, but shear waves can pass only through solids.
Compressional waves are the fastest seismic waves, and they arrive first at a distant point. For this reason, compressional waves are also called primary (P) waves. Shear waves, which travel slower and arrive later, are called secondary (S) waves.
Body waves travel faster deep within Earth than near the surface. For example, at depths of less than 16 miles (25 kilometers), compressional waves travel at about 4.2 miles (6.8 kilometers) per second, and shear waves travel at 2.4 miles (3.8 kilometers) per second. At a depth of 620 miles (1,000 kilometers), the waves travel more than 11/2 times that speed.
Surface waves are long, slow waves. They produce what people feel as slow rocking sensations and cause little or no damage to buildings.
There are two kinds of surface waves: (1) Love waves and (2) Rayleigh waves. Love waves travel through Earth’s surface horizontally and move the ground from side to side. Rayleigh waves make the surface of Earth roll like waves on the ocean. Typical Love waves travel at about 23/4 miles (4.4 kilometers) per second, and Rayleigh waves, the slowest of the seismic waves, move at about 21/4 miles (3.7 kilometers) per second. The two types of waves were named for two British physicists, Augustus E. H. Love and Lord Rayleigh, who mathematically predicted the existence of the waves in 1911 and 1885, respectively.
How earthquakes cause damage: Earthquakes can damage buildings, bridges, dams, and other structures, as well as many natural features. Near a fault, both the shifting of large blocks of Earth’s crust, called fault slippage, and the shaking of the ground due to seismic waves cause destruction. Away from the fault, shaking produces most of the damage. Undersea earthquakes may cause huge tsunamis that swamp coastal areas. Other hazards during earthquakes include rockfalls, ground settling, and falling trees or tree branches.
Fault slippage: The rock on either side of a fault may shift only slightly during an earthquake or may move several feet or meters. In some cases, only the rock deep in the ground shifts, and no movement occurs at Earth’s surface. In an extremely large earthquake, the ground may suddenly heave 20 feet (6 meters) or more. Any structure that spans a fault may be wrenched apart. The shifting blocks of earth may also loosen the soil and rocks along a slope and trigger a landslide. In addition, fault slippage may break down the banks of rivers, lakes, and other bodies of water, causing flooding.
Ground shaking causes structures to sway from side to side, bounce up and down, and move in other violent ways. Buildings may slide off their foundations, collapse, or be shaken apart.
In areas with soft, wet soils, a process called liquefaction may intensify earthquake damage. Liquefaction occurs when strong ground shaking causes wet soils to behave temporarily like liquids rather than solids. Anything on top of liquefied soil may sink into the soft ground. The liquefied soil may also flow toward lower ground, burying anything in its path.
Tsunamis: An earthquake on the ocean floor can give a tremendous push to surrounding seawater and create one or more large, destructive waves called tsunamis, also known as seismic sea waves. Some people call tsunamis tidal waves, but scientists think the term is misleading because the waves are not caused by the tide. Tsunamis may build to heights of more than 100 feet (30 meters) when they reach shallow water near shore. In the open ocean, tsunamis typically move at speeds of 500 to 600 miles (800 to 970 kilometers) per hour. They can travel great distances while diminishing little in size and can flood coastal areas thousands of miles or kilometers from their source.
Structural hazards: Structures collapse during a quake when they are too weak or rigid to resist strong, rocking forces. In addition, tall buildings may vibrate wildly during an earthquake and knock into each other. Picture San Francisco earthquake of 1906 A major cause of death and property damage in earthquakes is fire. Fires may start if a quake ruptures gas or power lines. The 1906 San Francisco earthquake ranks as one of the worst disasters in United States history because of a fire that raged for three days after the quake.
Other hazards during an earthquake include spills of toxic chemicals and falling objects, such as tree limbs, bricks, and glass. Sewage lines may break, and sewage may seep into water supplies. Drinking of such impure water may cause cholera, typhoid, dysentery, and other serious diseases.
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An earthquake (also known as a quake, tremor or temblor) is the result of a sudden release of energy in the Earth’s crust that creates seismic waves. The seismicity or seismic activity of an area refers to the frequency, type and size of earthquakes experienced over a period of time. Earthquakes are measured with a seismometer; a device which also records is known as a seismograph. The moment magnitude (or the related and mostly obsolete Richter magnitude) of an earthquake is conventionally reported, with magnitude 3 or lower earthquakes being mostly imperceptible and magnitude 7 causing serious damage over large areas. Intensity of shaking is measured on the modified Mercalli scale.At the Earth’s surface, earthquakes manifest themselves by shaking and sometimes displacing the ground. When a large earthquake epicenter is located offshore, the seabed sometimes suffers sufficient displacement to cause a tsunami. The shaking in earthquakes can also trigger landslides and occasionally volcanic activity.In its most generic sense, the word earthquake is used to describe any seismic event—whether a natural phenomenon or an event caused by humans—that generates seismic waves. Earthquakes are caused mostly by rupture of geological faults, but also by volcanic activity, landslides, mine blasts, and nuclear tests. An earthquake’s point of initial rupture is called its focus or hypocenter. The term epicenter refers to the point at ground level directly above the hypocenter.
The following are Scriptures that describe the Earthquakes within the studies of the Tribulation Period:
For the Gentile nations, the heathen and pagan people, will rise and move up against and among one another bordering nations and kingdom against kingdom, one place of reign touching another; and there shall be famines, a lack of food, causing destitution for people being without food; and pestilences, a plague of diseases; and a shaking of the ground, causing it to tremble, shake sideways, back and forth, for the earth will be shaking in divers or various places, down through its’ distribution with intensity, in many locations. But all these are the beginning, of the grief, the first of the troubles, sorrows, of the birth pains and travail. Matthew 24:7-8.
For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be earth-shocks, earthquakes in divers or different and various places; and there shall be famines and troubles: these are the beginnings of sorrows, like the early pains of childbirth. Mark 13:8.
Then said he unto them, Nation shall rise up against and be moved against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: And great earth-shocks, great earthquakes and great shaking shall be in every divers and different places; and famines, people without food; and an outburst of disease and pestilences; and there will be great signs of terror and fearful sights from heaven. Luke 21:10-11.
The sixth seal is the beginning of the Great Tribulation Period. This “great earthquake” will occur in the Jordan River Valley as the antichrist or Islamic leader; with the ten Arab countries launch their attack against Israel. Upon their approach southward, this “great earthquake” will stop this Islamic army from their attempt to completely destroy the nation of Israel. This “great earthquake” will cause a resonance of earthquake shock waves to penetrate throughout the entire earth and create a worldwide domino effect of earthquake activity that will intensify for the next 3 ½ years. These earthquake shock waves will produce a secondary effect: volcanic eruptions on a global scale.
Phase Seven: 7th Seal, 7thTrumpet, 7th Vial
[Rev. 6:17] For the great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand?
[Rev. 11:15 & 19] And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign forever and ever. And the temple of God was opened in heaven, and there was seen in his temple the ark of his testament: and there were lightnings, and voices, and thunderings, and an earthquake, and great hail.
[Rev. 16:17-21] And the seventh angel poured out his vial into the air; and there came a great voice out of the temple of heaven, from the throne, saying, It is done. And there were voices, and thunders, and lightnings; and there was a great earthquake, such as was not since men were upon the earth, so mighty an earthquake, and so great. And the great city was divided into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell: and great Babylon came in remembrance before God, to give unto her the cup of the wine of the fierceness of his wrath. And there fell upon men a great hail out of heaven, every stone about the weight of a talent: and men blasphemed God because of the plague of the hail; for the plague thereof was exceeding great.
This is the last stage of His great wrath and there will be very few people left alive on the earth. This phase begins with an increase in the intensity of volcanic eruptions producing volcanic hail or bombs and finally brings about the greatest earthquake in the history of humanity. It will occur in the Jordan River Valley and will split the city of Jerusalem into three sections. This great earthquake will start a chain reaction of earthquakes throughout the global tectonic plate boundaries, resulting in the destruction the cities of the world and the city of Rome, Italy will be completely destroyed by volcanic fire by the Colli Albani volcano, eventually sinking beneath the earths’ surface and engulf by the Tiber River. This chain reaction will end with great volcanic hail or melting rocks being thrown out upon the unbelieving people of the world during this forty-five day period of the Wrath of God.
9. And there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair and the moon became as blood; and the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig tree casteth her untimely figs, when she is shaken of a mighty wind. And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together; and every mountain and island were moved out of their places. And should destroy and bring to ruin them which morally corrupt the earth. And there were lightning and voices and thundering and an earthquake and great hail.
14. And there were voices, and thunders, and lightnings; and there was a great earthquake, such as was not since men were upon the earth, so mighty an earthquake, and so great. And the great city was divided into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell: and great Babylon came in remembrance before God, to give unto her the cup of the wine of the fierceness of his wrath. And every island fled away, and the mountains were not found. And there fell upon men a great hail out of heaven, every stone about the weight of a talent: and men blasphemed God because of the plague of the hail; for the plague thereof was exceeding great.
Behold, the LORD God Jehovah, the Self-Existent, Eternal One makes the land of the earth empty, and depopulates it, and annihilates it, and makes it waste, and turns it upside down, and scatters by dashing in pieces and abroad the ones who dwell and settle down on the land of the earth, the inhabitants thereof. And it shall be, as with the people, so with the priest; as with the servant, so with his master; as with the maid, so with her mistress; as with the buyer, so with the seller; as with the lender, so with the borrower; as with the taker of usury, so with the giver of usury to him. The land of the earth shall be utterly emptied, and depopulated, and utterly plundered and spoiled: for the LORD God Jehovah, the Self-Existent, Eternal One hath spoken and properly arranged this word. The earth mourns and fades away, the world languishes and fades away, and the haughty people of the earth do languish. The earth also is defiled under the inhabitants thereof; because they have transgressed the laws, changed the ordinance, broken the everlasting covenant. Therefore hath the curse devoured and consumed the land of the earth, and they that dwell therein are desolate and guilty to be punished and to perish: therefore the inhabitants of the land of the earth are burned, and few men remain. Fear, and the pit, and the snare, are upon thee, O inhabitant of the earth. And it shall come to pass, that he who flees and escapes from the noise and sound of the fear, alarm and terror shall fall into the pit and snare as a catching for prey; and he who comes up out of the midst of the pit shall be taken in the spring trap and snare: for the windows from on high are open wide, and the foundations of the ground and land of the earth do shake. The land and field of the earth is utterly broken down into pieces, the ground and the land of the earth is clean dissolved, it is moved and wavered, the earth is shaken off course, it is moved exceedingly, falling down and shaken violently. The earth shall reel and waver, to and fro, as in wavering as being intoxicated and like a drunkard, and shall flee, waver and be tossing like a hammock, be removed like a cottage; and the transgression and rebellion and sin, thereof shall be heavy and a severe burden upon it; and it shall fall, and not rise again. And it shall come to pass in that day, that the LORD Jehovah, the Self-Existent, Eternal One, shall visit to punish the mass of those organized for war and the host of the high and haughty ones that are in a lofty and elevated place, and the kings of the earth upon the land of the earth. And they shall be gathered together, as prisoners are gathered in the pit, a dungeon and prison, and shall be shut up and fastened in the prison, and after many days shall they be visited for punishment. Then the moon shall be confounded and brought to confusion and the heat of the sun ashamed, pale and delayed, when the LORD Jehovah, the Self-Existent, Eternal One, of the Hosts of Armies shall take council to ascend to the throne and begin His royal reign in mount Zion, and in Jerusalem, and before his ancients in splendor, glory and honor. Isaiah 24:1-6 & 17-23.
Thou shall be visited by the Lord Jehovah of Hosts with a peal of thunder, with earthquake and vibration, with fierceness, shaking and vapor; and great noise, with whirlwind, storm and tempest and the flash of bright, flaming, devouring, burning fire. Isaiah 29:6.
Therefore, son of a human being: speak an inspired prophesy and say unto Gog, the northern nation, Thus says, the Lord, the Only God; In that day, when my people of Israel dwell in a quiet, secure and feeling of safety, Will you not know and be ascertain by seeing it? And thou shall come from the northern border, you and many people as a unit of troops, with all of them riding and being dispatched upon horses, a great assembly and multitude, an abundant and a mighty army of fierce and strength. And thou shall come up and ascend as a trap against my people of Israel, as a thunder cloud covering the sky to cover and overwhelm the land. It shall be in the latter and future days and I will bring thee against my land, that the foreign heathen, Gentile people may know me, when I shall be sanctified in thee O’ Gog, the northern nation, before their eyes. Thus says the Lord, the Only God, Art thou he of whom I have spoken in ancient time by my servants, the inspired men and prophets of Israel which spoke by inspiration in those days, many years that I would bring thee against them? And it shall come to pass at the same time, when Gog, the northern nation, will come against the land of Israel saith the Lord, the Only God, that my anger and hot displeasure, fury and rage will come up into my face. For in my jealousy and zeal, in the burning, hot flaming fire of my outburst of passionate anger, rage and wrath, have I spoken: For certain, in that day, there shall be a great and insolent shaking and uproar, a vibration and quaking in the land of Israel. So that the fishes of the sea and the birds of the air of heaven and the living creatures of the field and all reptiles, and any other rapid moving animals that creep by moving upon the soil of the earth and all human beings, that are upon the face of the soil of the earth, will shake at my presence, and the mountains and range of hills shall be broken into pieces, and the wall of protection will fall to the ground. And I will call out for a cutting instrument of a sword against all and throughout all my mountain range of hills and country, Says the Lord, the Only God: every man’s cutting instrument of a sword will be against his brother and kinsman. And I will judge for a sentence to vindicate and punish against him, with a plague and pestilence, with a substance like blood; and I will rain upon him and upon his army and crowd of troops, upon many people as a collective unit, that are with him, an over flowing gush, and conquering overflowing rain, and a great weight of a peal of hail stones, of a hot, burning, fiery, flaming fire and an inflammable, sulfur resin of brimstone. Thus will I magnify myself, and sanctify myself, and I will be known in the eyes of many a foreign, heathen, Gentile people and you will know by ascertain by seeing, that I am the Lord Jehovah, the Self-Existent and Eternal One. Ezekiel 38:14-23.
Sanctify ye a fast, to call out a solemn assembly to a meeting, to gather the elders and all the inhabitants, who settle and dwell on the land of the earth, into the house of the Lord Jehovah, the Self-Existent and Eternal One, your great and mighty God, the Judge; cry and shriek unto the Lord Jehovah; Oh, oh, Alas, for the day of the Lord Jehovah, the Self-Existent and Eternal One is near at hand: as a destruction of violence and ravage of wasting, from the Almighty shall it come. Joel 1:14-15.
Blow ye the trumpet in Zion, and sound an alarm in my holy mountain: let all the inhabitants of the land tremble with violent emotion and stand in awe: for the day of the LORD Jehovah cometh, for it is nigh at hand; A day of darkness and misery, of gloominess and misfortune, a day of clouds and lowering of the dark thick sky, as the day dawns upon the mountains: a great people, numerous and strong; there hath not been anything like this, neither shall be any more after it, even to the years of many generations. A hot, fiery, flame devours and consumes them; and behind them a spearing flame is set on a flaming blaze: the land is as the Garden of Eden before them, and behind them a desolate, devastation and wasted wilderness; yea, and nothing shall escape it. The appearance of them is as the appearance of horses; and as horsemen, so shall they run. Like the noise of chariots on the tops of mountains shall they leap, like the noise of a flame of fire that devours the stubble, as a strong people set in battle array. Before their face the people shall be much pained: all faces shall gather blackness. They shall run like mighty men; they shall climb the wall like men of war; and they shall march everyone on his ways, and they shall not break their ranks: Neither shall one thrust another; they shall walk everyone in his path: and when they fall upon the sword, they shall not be wounded. They shall run to and fro in the city; they shall run upon the wall, they shall climb up upon the houses; they shall enter in at the windows like a thief. The earth shall quake and quiver with a violent rage, shake and tremble before them; the air of the heavens shall tremble and move: the sun rays in the arch of the sky, from the east, to the west and the moon shall be an ashy dark color; and the stars shall withdraw and remove their clear brilliant shining: And the LORD shall thunder forth His voice before His army: for His encampment is very exceeding great: for He is mighty and strong to execute His word: for the day of the LORD Jehovah is very great and very terrible, to be feared; and who can endure and bear it? Joel 2:1-11.