An earthquake is the result of a sudden release of energy in the Earth's crust that creates seismic waves. Earthquakes are recorded with a seismometer, also known as a seismograph. The moment magnitude of an earthquake is conventionally reported, or the related and mostly obsolete Richter magnitude, 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. Earthquake can refer to: Earthquake, a seismological event. ... This article is about Earth as a planet. ... Geologic provinces of the world (USGS) In geology, a crust is the outermost solid shell of a planet or moon. ... Body waves and surface waves Earthquake wave paths p-wave and s-wave from seismograph A seismic wave is a wave that travels through the Earth, most often as the result of a tectonic earthquake, sometimes from an explosion. ... Seismometer is of Greek origin and comes from Seism - the shakes and Meteo - I measure are instruments that measure and record motions of the ground, including those of seismic waves generated by earthquakes, nuclear explosions, and other seismic sources. ... The moment magnitude scale was introduced in 1979 by Thomas C. Hanks and Hiroo Kanamori as a successor to the Richter scale and is used by seismologists to compare the energy released by earthquakes. ... The Richter magnitude scale, or more correctly local magnitude ML scale, assigns a single number to quantify the amount of seismic energy released by an earthquake. ... The Mercalli intensity scale is a scale used for measuring the intensity of an earthquake. ...

At the Earth's surface, earthquakes manifest themselves by a shaking and sometimes displacement of 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. For other uses, see Epicenter (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Tsunami (disambiguation). ...

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, huge amounts of gas migration, mainly methane deep within the earth, but also by volcanic activity, landslides, mine blasts, and nuclear experiments. For other uses, see Phenomena (disambiguation). ... Body waves and surface waves Earthquake wave paths p-wave and s-wave from seismograph A seismic wave is a wave that travels through the Earth, most often as the result of a tectonic earthquake, sometimes from an explosion. ...

An earthquake's point of initial rupture is called its focus or hypocenter. The term epicenter means the point at ground level directly above this. The hypocenter or hypocentre (literally: below the center from the Greek υπόκεντρον), may refer to the site of an earthquake or to that of a nuclear explosion. ... The hypocenter or hypocentre (literally: below the center from the Greek υπόκεντρον), may refer to the site of an earthquake or to that of a nuclear explosion. ... For other uses, see Epicenter (disambiguation). ...

Global earthquake epicenters, 1963–1998

Global plate tectonic movement

From http://denali. ... From http://denali. ... For other uses, see Epicenter (disambiguation). ...

Naturally occurring earthquakes

Fault types

Tectonic earthquakes will occur anywhere within the earth where there is sufficient stored elastic strain energy to drive fracture propagation along a fault plane. In the case of transform or convergent type plate boundaries, which form the largest fault surfaces on earth, they will move past each other smoothly and aseismically only if there are no irregularities or asperities along the boundary that increase the frictional resistance. Most boundaries do have such asperities and this leads to a form of stick-slip behaviour. Once the boundary has locked, continued relative motion between the plates leads to increasing stress and therefore, stored strain energy in the volume around the fault surface. This continues until the stress has risen sufficiently to break through the asperity, suddenly allowing sliding over the locked portion of the fault, releasing the stored energy. This energy is released as a combination of radiated elastic strain seismic waves, frictional heating of the fault surface, and cracking of the rock, thus causing an earthquake. This process of gradual build-up of strain and stress punctuated by occasional sudden earthquake failure is referred to as the Elastic-rebound theory. It is estimated that only 10 percent or less of an earthquake's total energy is radiated as seismic energy. Most of the earthquake's energy is used to power the earthquake fracture growth or is converted into heat generated by friction. Therefore, earthquakes lower the Earth's available elastic potential energy and raise its temperature, though these changes are negligible compared to the conductive and convective flow of heat out from the Earth's deep interior.^[1] Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Old fault exposed by roadcut near Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. ... In plate tectonics, a transform boundary (also known as transform fault boundary, transform plate boundary, transform plate margin, strike-slip boundary, sliding boundary, transverse boundary, or conservative plate boundary) is said to occur when tectonic plates slide and grind against each other along a transform fault. ... In plate tectonics, a convergent boundary – also known as a convergent plate boundary or a destructive plate boundary – is an actively deforming region where two (or more) tectonic plates or fragments of lithosphere move toward one another. ... In geology, aseismic creep is measurable surface displacement along a fault in the absence of notable earthquakes. ... This article is about the deformation of materials. ... A seismic wave is a wave that travels through the Earth, often as the result of an earthquake or explosion. ... Elastic rebound In geology, the elastic rebound theory was the first theory to explain the immediate cause of earthquakes. ... Cracks in rock resulting from stress A fracture is any local separation or discontinuity plane in a geologic formation, such as a joint or a fault that divides the rock into two or more pieces. ...

Where plate boundaries occur within continental lithosphere, deformation is spread out a over a much larger area than the plate boundary itself. In the case of the San Andreas fault continental transform, many earthquakes occur away from the plate boundary and are related to strains developed within the broader zone of deformation caused by major irregularities in the fault trace (e.g. the “Big bend” region). The Northridge earthquake was associated with movement on a blind thrust within such a zone. Another example is the strongly oblique convergent plate boundary between the Arabian and Eurasian plates where it runs through the northwestern part of the Zagros mountains. The deformation associated with this plate boundary is partitioned into nearly pure thrust sense movements perpendicular to the boundary over a wide zone to the southwest and nearly pure strike-slip motion along the Main Recent Fault close to the actual plate boundary itself. This is demonstrated by earthquake focal mechanisms ^[2]. View of the San Andreas Fault on the Carrizo Plain in central California, 35°07N, 119°39W The San Andreas Fault is a geological fault that runs a length of roughly 800 miles (1300 kilometres) through western and southern California in the United States. ... The Northridge earthquake occurred on January 17, 1994 at 4:31 AM Pacific Standard Time in Reseda, a neighborhood in the city of Los Angeles, California. ... The Arabian plate is shown in bright yellow on this map The Arabian Plate is a continental tectonic plate covering the Arabian peninsula and extending northward to Turkey. ...  The Eurasian plate, shown in green The Eurasian Plate is a tectonic plate covering Eurasia (a landmass consisting of the traditional continents of Europe and Asia) except that it does not cover the Indian subcontinent, the Arabian subcontinent, and the area east of the Verkhoyansk Range in East Siberia. ... The Zagros Mountains (In Persian:رشته‌کوه‌های زاگرس) make up Irans second largest mountain range. ...

All tectonic plates have internal stress fields caused by their interactions with neighbouring plates and sedimentary loading or unloading (e.g. deglaciation). These stresses may be sufficient to cause failure along existing fault planes, giving rise to intra-plate earthquakes.

The majority of tectonic earthquakes originate at depths not exceeding tens of kilometers. In subduction zones, where older and colder oceanic crust descends beneath another tectonic plate, Deep focus earthquakes may occur at much greater depths (up to seven hundred kilometers). These seismically active areas of subduction are known as Wadati-Benioff zones. These are earthquakes that occur at a depth at which the subducted lithosphere should no longer be brittle, due to the high temperature and pressure. A possible mechanism for the generation of deep focus earthquakes is faulting caused by olivine undergoing a phase transition into a spinel structure.^[3] Geometry of a subduction zone - insets to show accretionary prism and partial melting of hydrated asthenosphere. ... Age of oceanic crust Oceanic crust is the part of Earths lithosphere that surfaces in the ocean basins. ... A deep focus earthquake is an earthquake that occurs at depths of 600 to 700 km beneath the Earths surface. ... Subduction zones mark sites of convective downwelling of the Earths lithosphere. ... The tectonic plates of the lithosphere on Earth. ... The mineral olivine (also called chrysolite and, when gem-quality, peridot) is a magnesium iron silicate with the formula (Mg,Fe)2SiO4. ... This diagram shows the nomenclature for the different phase transitions. ... The spinels are any of a class of minerals which crystallize in the isometric system with an octahedral habit. ...

Earthquakes also often occur in volcanic regions and are caused there, both by tectonic faults and by the movement of magma in volcanoes. Such earthquakes can serve as an early warning of volcanic eruptions. Magma is molten rock located beneath the surface of the Earth (or any other terrestrial planet), and which often collects in a magma chamber. ... Cleveland Volcano in the Aleutian Islands of Alaska photographed from the International Space Station For other uses, see Volcano (disambiguation). ...

Sometimes a series of earthquakes occur in a sort of earthquake storm, where the earthquakes strike a fault in clusters, each triggered by the shaking or stress redistribution of the previous earthquakes. Similar to aftershocks but on adjacent segments of fault, these storms occur over the course of years, and with some of the later earthquakes as damaging as the early ones. Such a pattern was observed in the sequence of about a dozen earthquakes that struck the North Anatolian Fault in Turkey in the 20th century, the half dozen large earthquakes in New Madrid in 1811-1812, and has been inferred for older anomalous clusters of large earthquakes in the Middle East and in the Mojave Desert. An earthquake storm is a recently proposed theory about earthquakes where an earthquake can trigger a series of other large earthquakes within the same tectonic plate as the stress transfers along the fault. ... Aftershocks are earthquakes in the same region of the mainshock (generally within a few rupture length) but of smaller magnitude and which occur with a pattern that follows Omoris law. ... The North Anatolian Fault (Turkish: Kuzey Anadolu Fayı) is one of the most energetic earthquake zones in the world. ... New Madrid is a city located in New Madrid County, Missouri, 42 miles (68 km) south by west of Cairo, Illinois, on the Mississippi River. ...

Size and frequency of occurrence

This article may not provide balanced geographical coverage on a region. An editor has expressed concern that this article is biased. Please improve this article or discuss the issue on the talk page.

Minor earthquakes occur nearly constantly around the world in places like California and Alaska in the U.S., as well as in Chile, Peru, Indonesia, Iran, India the Azores in Portugal, Turkey, New Zealand, Greece, Italy, and Japan,^[4] Larger earthquakes occur less frequently, the relationship being exponential; for example, roughly ten times as many earthquakes larger than magnitude 4 occur in a particular time period than earthquakes larger than magnitude 5. In the (low seismicity) United Kingdom, for example, it has been calculated that the average recurrences are: Image File history File links Unbalanced_scales. ... This article is about the U.S. state. ... For other uses, see Alaska (disambiguation). ... Motto (Portuguese for Rather die free than in peace subjugated) Anthem  (national)  (local) Capital Ponta Delgada1 Angra do Heroísmo2 Horta3 Largest city Ponta Delgada Official languages Portuguese Government Autonomous region  -  President Carlos César Establishment  -  Settled 1439   -  Autonomy 1976  Area  -  Total 2,333 km² (n/a) 911 sq mi... In seismology, the Gutenberg-Richter law states that the number of earthquakes per year of Richter magnitude M statistically has the form Number of earthquakes of size M per year ~ exp(a - bM) where exp is the exponential function. ...

• an earthquake of 3.7 - 4.6 every year
• an earthquake of 4.7 - 5.5 every 10 years
• an earthquake of 5.6 or larger every 100 years.

even though the Richter scale goes up to 12 the biggest earthquake was 9.8

The number of seismic stations has increased from about 350 in 1931 to many thousands today. As a result, many more earthquakes are reported than in the past because of the vast improvement in instrumentation (not because the number of earthquakes has increased). The USGS estimates that, since 1900, there have been an average of 18 major earthquakes (magnitude 7.0-7.9) and one great earthquake (magnitude 8.0 or greater) per year, and that this average has been relatively stable.^[5] In fact, in recent years, the number of major earthquakes per year has actually decreased, although this is likely a statistical fluctuation. More detailed statistics on the size and frequency of earthquakes is available from the USGS.^[6] The United States Geological Survey (USGS) is a scientific agency of the United States government. ...

Most of the world's earthquakes (90%, and 81% of the largest) take place in the 40,000-km-long, horseshoe-shaped zone called the circum-Pacific seismic belt, also known as the Pacific Ring of Fire, which for the most part bounds the Pacific Plate.^[7][8] Massive earthquakes tend to occur along other plate boundaries, too, such as along the Himalayan Mountains. “The Ring of Fire” redirects here. ... “The Ring of Fire” redirects here. ...  The Pacific plate, shown in pale yellow The Pacific Plate is an oceanic tectonic plate beneath the Pacific Ocean. ... Perspective view of the Himalaya and Mount Everest as seen from space looking south-south-east from over the Tibetan Plateau. ...

With the rapid growth of mega-cities such as Mexico City, Tokyo or Tehran, in areas of high seismic risk, some seismologists are warning that a single quake may claim the lives of up to 3 million people.^[9][10][11] This article is about megacities in general. ... Nickname: Location of Mexico City Coordinates: , Country Federal entity Boroughs The 16 delegaciones Founded c. ... For other uses, see Tokyo (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Tehran (disambiguation). ...

Effects/impacts of earthquakes

1755 copper engraving depicting Lisbon in ruins and in flames after the 1755 Lisbon earthquake. A tsunami overwhelms the ships in the harbor.

Smoldering after the 1906 San Francisco earthquake.

Earthquake damage in Anchorage, Alaska (1964).

Earthquake damage in Mexico City (1985).

Earthquake damage in Armenia (1988).

A section of the Cypress viaduct collapsed during the Loma Prieta Earthquake (1989).

Kaiser Permanente Building destroyed in the Northridge Earthquake (1994).

Damage in Great Hanshin earthquake (1995) in Kobe, Japan.

Chūetsu earthquake (2004).

Please help improve this section by expanding it. Further information might be found on the talk page or at requests for expansion.

There are many effects of earthquakes including, but not limited to the following: Image File history File links 1755_Lisbon_earthquake. ... Image File history File links 1755_Lisbon_earthquake. ... For other uses, see Lisbon (disambiguation). ... This 1755 copper engraving shows the ruins of Lisbon in flames and a tsunami overwhelming the ships in the harbor. ... For other uses, see Tsunami (disambiguation). ... Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (1408x1090, 273 KB) San Francisco, California, United States. ... Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (1408x1090, 273 KB) San Francisco, California, United States. ... Sarah San Francisco Earthquake redirects here. ... Download high resolution version (1000x770, 166 KB)Damage to Fourth Avenue, Anchorage, Alaska, caused by the Good Friday Earthquake. ... Download high resolution version (1000x770, 166 KB)Damage to Fourth Avenue, Anchorage, Alaska, caused by the Good Friday Earthquake. ... Note: an anchorage is a place where a ship lays anchor. ... For other uses, see Alaska (disambiguation). ... Nickname: Location of Mexico City Coordinates: , Country Federal entity Boroughs The 16 delegaciones Founded c. ... Image File history File links Spitakear. ... Image File history File links Spitakear. ... USGS photo from 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake. ... USGS photo from 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake. ... The Loma Prieta earthquake was a major earthquake that struck the San Francisco Bay Area of California on October 17, 1989 at 5:04 p. ... Image File history File links Metadata Size of this preview: 800 × 534 pixelsFull resolution (1200 × 801 pixel, file size: 1. ... Image File history File links Metadata Size of this preview: 800 × 534 pixelsFull resolution (1200 × 801 pixel, file size: 1. ... The Northridge earthquake occurred on January 17, 1994 at 4:31 AM Pacific Standard Time in Reseda, a neighborhood in the city of Los Angeles, California. ... Damage at Minatogawa, Kobe Damage at Sannomiya, Kobe The Great Hanshin Earthquake, or Kobe earthquake as it is more commonly known overseas, was an earthquake in Japan which occurred on Tuesday January 17, 1995 at 5:46 a. ... This article is about the Japanese city. ... Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (1857x1393, 517 KB) 新潟県中越地震後の小千谷市若葉町付近の様子。歩道が沈みマンホールが浮き上がり、電柱が傾く。2004年10月25日 本人撮影。（ja:画像:小千谷市の液状化現象.jpgと同じ画像を元に編集。こちらの方が高画質です。） 抜け上がり被害の例。 File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Earthquake ... Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (1857x1393, 517 KB) 新潟県中越地震後の小千谷市若葉町付近の様子。歩道が沈みマンホールが浮き上がり、電柱が傾く。2004年10月25日 本人撮影。（ja:画像:小千谷市の液状化現象.jpgと同じ画像を元に編集。こちらの方が高画質です。） 抜け上がり被害の例。 File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Earthquake ... The Chūetsu Earthquakes ) began at 5:56 p. ... Image File history File links This is a lossless scalable vector image. ...

Shaking and ground rupture

Shaking and ground rupture are the main effects created by earthquakes, principally resulting in more or less severe damage to buildings or other rigid structures. The severity of the local effects depends on the complex combination of the earthquake magnitude, the distance from epicenter, and the local geological and geomorphological conditions, which may amplify or reduce wave propagation. The ground-shaking is measured by ground acceleration. The Richter magnitude scale, or more correctly local magnitude ML scale, assigns a single number to quantify the amount of seismic energy released by an earthquake. ... For other uses, see Epicenter (disambiguation). ... Wave propagation refers to the ways waves travel through a medium (waveguide). ... Acceleration is the time rate of change of velocity and/or direction, and at any point on a velocity-time graph, it is given by the slope of the tangent to the curve at that point. ...

Specific local geological, geomorphological, and geostructural features can induce high levels of shaking on the ground surface even from low-intensity earthquakes. This effect is called site or local amplification. It is principally due to the transfer of the seismic motion from hard deep soils to soft superficial soils and to effects of seismic energy focalization owing to typical geometrical setting of the deposits. Seismology (from the Greek seismos = earthquake and logos = word) is the scientific study of earthquakes and the movement of waves through the Earth. ...

Ground rupture is a visible breaking and displacement of the earth's surface along the trace of the fault, which may be of the order of few metres in the case of major earthquakes. Ground rupture is a major risk for large engineering structures such as dams, bridges and nuclear power stations and requires careful mapping of existing faults to identify any likely to break the ground surface within the life of the structure. DAMS is a racing team from France, involved in many areas of motorsports. ... This article is about the edifice. ... This article is about applications of nuclear fission reactors as power sources. ...

Landslides and avalanches

Earthquakes can cause landslides and avalanches, which may cause damage in hilly and mountainous areas. This article is about geological phenomenon. ... A Himalayan avalanche near Mount Everest. ...

Fires

Following an earthquake, fires can be generated by break of the electrical power or gas lines. In the event of water mains rupturing and a loss of pressure, it may also become difficult to stop the spread of a fire once it has started. For other uses, see Fire (disambiguation). ... For delivered electrical power, see Electrical power industry. ...

Soil liquefaction

Soil liquefaction occurs when, because of the shaking, water-saturated granular material temporarily loses its strength and transforms from a solid to a liquid. Soil liquefaction may cause rigid structures, as buildings or bridges, to tilt or sink into the liquefied deposits. Earthquake liquefaction, often referred to simply as liquefaction, is the process by which saturated, unconsolidated soil or sand is converted into a suspension during an earthquake. ... When something is granular, it is made up of minute semi-fine particals like sand or granulated sugar. ... This box:      For other uses, see Solid (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Liquid (disambiguation). ...

Tsunami

Undersea earthquakes and earthquake-triggered landslides into the sea, can cause Tsunami. See, for example, the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake. For other uses, see Tsunami (disambiguation). ... The 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake was an undersea (subduction) earthquake that occurred at 00:58:53 UTC December 26, 2004, with an epicentre off the west coast of Sumatra, Indonesia. ...

Human impacts

Earthquakes may result in disease, lack of basic necessities, loss of life, higher insurance premiums, general property damage, road and bridge damage, and collapse of buildings or destabilization of the base of buildings which may lead to collapse in future earthquakes. This article is about the medical term. ...

Preparation for earthquakes

• Earthquake preparedness
• Household seismic safety
• HurriQuake nail (for resisting hurricanes and earthquakes)
• Seismic retrofit
• Seismic hazard
• Mitigation of seismic motion
• Earthquake prediction

The most significant human impact is loss of life Earthquake preparedness refers to a variety of measures designed to help individuals, businesses, and local and state governments in earthquake prone areas to prepare for significant earthquakes. ... This article is in need of attention. ... The HurriQuake environment nail is a newly invented nail designed by Ed Sutt for Stanley-Bostitch, a division of Stanley Works. ... Seismic retrofitting is the modification of existing structures to make them more resistant to seismic activity, ground motion, or soil failure due to earthquakes. ... If you want to build a house and need to know where the best (or the worst) place to locate for earthquake shaking, then you need to dig up the regional seismic hazard maps. ... The destabilizing action of an earthquake on constructions may be direct (seismic motion of the ground) or indirect (earthquake-induced landslides and liquefaction of the foundation soils). ... Seismic hazard map of the San Francisco Bay Area, showing the probability of a major earthquake occurring by 2032 An earthquake prediction is a prediction that an earthquake in a specific magnitude range will occur in a specific region and time window. ...

Specific fault articles

The Alpine Fault is clearly visible from space, running along the western edge of the Southern Alps from the southwestern coast towards the northeastern corner of the South Island. ... The introduction to this article provides insufficient context for those unfamiliar with the subject matter. ... Structure of the Cascadia subduction zone Area of the Cascadia subduction zone The Cascadia subduction zone is a very long sloping fault that stretches from northern Vancouver Island to northern California. ... The exposed geology of the Death Valley area presents a diverse and complex story that includes at least 23 formations of sedimentary units, two major gaps in the geologic record called unconformities, and at least one distinct set of related formations geologists call groups. ... The Great Glen Geological Fault The Great Glen Fault is a long strike-slip fault or ancient transform fault that runs through its namesake the Great Glen (Glen Albyn) in Scotland. ... The Indonesian island of Sumatra is located in a highly seismic area of the world. ... For recent activity in the region shown on this map see the USGS map for this location. ... The Highland Boundary Fault traverses Scotland from Arran to Stonehaven. ... The Hope Fault is a right-lateral oblique slip fault in the South Island of New Zealand. ... The Liquiñe-Ofqui Fault marked with red. ... The North Anatolian Fault Zone (NAFZ) is a 1600 km long geologic fault between the northern edge of the Anatolian Plate and the Eurasian Plate in northern Turkey. ... Seismic map New Madrid Seismic Zone - USGS The New Madrid Seismic Zone, also known as the Reelfoot Rift or the New Madrid Fault Line, is a major seismic zone, located in the mideastern United States. ... View of the San Andreas Fault on the Carrizo Plain in central California, 35°07N, 119°39W The San Andreas Fault is a geological fault that runs a length of roughly 800 miles (1300 kilometres) through western and southern California in the United States. ...

Major earthquakes

Main article: List of earthquakes

The following is a list of major earthquakes. ...

Pre-20th century

• Pompeii (62 AD).
• Aleppo Earthquake (1138).
• Basel earthquake (1356). Major earthquake that struck Central Europe in 1356.
• Carniola earthquake (1511). A major earthquake that shook a large portion of South-Central Europe. Its epicenter was around the town of Idrija, in today's Slovenia. It caused great damage to structures all over Carniola, including Ljubljana, and in western Carinthia, particularly in Villach and Klagenfurt which were almost completely destroyed. There was some minor damage in Venice and other cities, too.
• Shaanxi Earthquake (1556). Deadliest known earthquake in history, estimated to have killed 830,000 in China.
• Dover Straits (1580).
• Dubrovnik earthquake (1667). Disastrous earthquake in Dubrovnik, Croatia killed about 3/5 of the population.
• Port Royal Earthquake (1692). An earthquake on June 7, 1692, largely destroyed Port Royal, a safe harbor for pirates, causing two thirds of the city to sink into the Caribbean Sea.
• The great Sicilian earthquake (1693). As many as 100,000 may have died.
• Cascadia Earthquake (1700).
• Tokyo earthquake (1703). 37,000 died.
• Kamchatka earthquakes (1737) The third biggest earthquake on record measuring 9.3 on the Richter scale.
• Lisbon earthquake (1755), one of the most destructive and deadly earthquakes in history, killing between 60,000 and 100,000 people and causing a major tsunami that affected parts of Europe, North Africa and the Caribbean.
• Calabria earthquake (1783). Series of 6 earthquakes in Calabria, Italy killed 50,000.^[12]
• Quito earthquake. (1797) Quito, Viceroyalty of Peru, now the capital of Ecuador, was devastated by an earthquake. 40,000 died.
• New Madrid Earthquake (1811), and another tremor (1812) that also struck the small Missouri town, was reportedly the strongest ever in North America and made the Mississippi River temporarily change its direction and permanently altered its course in the region.
• Fort Tejon Earthquake (1857). Estimated Richter Scale above 8, said the strongest earthquake in Southern California history.
• Great Neapolitan Earthquake (1857). Estimated Richter Scale of 6.9. 11,000 dead.
• 1872 Lone Pine earthquake (1872). Might been strongest ever measured in California with an estimated Richter Scale of 8.1 said seismologists.
• Charleston earthquake (1886). Largest earthquake in the southeastern United States, killed 100.
• Ljubljana earthquake (14. IV. 1895), a series of powerful quakes that ultimately had a vital impact on the city of Ljubljana, being a catalyst of its urban renewal.
• Assam earthquake of 1897 (1897). Large earthquake that destroyed all masonry structures, measuring more than 8 on the Richter scale.

For other uses, see Pompeii (disambiguation). ... The 1138 Aleppo earthquake was an earthquake that was located near the town of Aleppo in northern Syria on in 11 October 1138. ... Tremblement de terre de Bâle de 1356 1356 Basel earthquake ---- (more info) Stage 3 : Proofreaders Needed (How-to) French article is short but well-referenced. ... Carniola English and Latin; (Slovenian Kranjska, German Krain) is a name for a region in Slovenia. ... Central Europe is the region lying between the variously and vaguely defined areas of Eastern and Western Europe. ... Area: 293. ... Carniola English and Latin; (Slovenian Kranjska, German Krain) is a name for a region in Slovenia. ... Location in Slovenia Coordinates: , Country Founded AD 15 (as Colonia Iulia Aemona) Government  - Mayor and governor Zoran Janković (Lista Zorana Jankovića) Area  - Total 275. ... Carinthia within Austria-Hungary (number 3) Coat of arms of the Dukes of Carinthia, today state arms The Duchy of Carinthia (German: ; Slovenian: ) was a duchy located in southern Austria and parts of northern Slovenia. ... Villach [ˈfɪlax] (Slovenian Beljak) is the second largest city in Carinthia in the south of Austria, on the river Drau (Slovenian Drava) and represents an important traffic junction for Austria and the whole Alpe-Adria region. ... Lindwurm fountain in the center of Klagenfurt Klagenfurt (Slovene: Celovec), officially known as Klagenfurt am Wörthersee,[1] is the capital of the federal state of Carinthia in Austria. ... For other uses, see Venice (disambiguation). ... Map of China showing Shaanxi province (red) and the other provinces affected by the earthquake (orange) The Shaanxi earthquake or Hua County Earthquake is the deadliest earthquake on record, killing approximately 830,000 people. ... Though severe earthquakes in the north of France and southern England are rare,[1] the Dover Straits earthquake of 6 April 1580 appears to have been the largest in the recorded history of England, Flanders or northern France. ... Look up Dubrovnik in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Port-Royal was a Cistercian convent in Magny-les-Hameaux, in the Vallée de Chevreuse southwest of Paris that launched a number of culturally important institutions. ... is the 158th day of the year (159th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Events February 13 - Massacre of Glencoe March 1 - The Salem witch trials begin in Salem Village, Massachusetts Bay Colony with the charging of three women with witchcraft. ... Port-Royal was a Cistercian convent in Magny-les-Hameaux, in the Vallée de Chevreuse southwest of Paris that launched a number of culturally important institutions. ... Pirates may refer to: A group of people committing any of these activities: Piracy at sea or on a river/lake. ... Map of Central America and the Caribbean The Caribbean Sea (pronounced or ) is a tropical sea in the Western Hemisphere, part of the Atlantic Ocean, southeast of the Gulf of Mexico. ... Illustration 1: Sicilian Baroque. ... The 1700 Cascadia Earthquake was a magnitude 8. ... For other uses, see Tokyo (disambiguation). ... The Kamchatka earthquakes were a pair of megathrust earthquakes occurring off the coast of the Kamchatka Peninsula, in Russia on October 16, 1737, and on November 4, 1952, in the magnitude of ~9. ... This 1755 copper engraving shows the ruins of Lisbon in flames and a tsunami overwhelming the ships in the harbor. ... For other uses, see Tsunami (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Europe (disambiguation). ...  Northern Africa (UN subregion)  geographic, including above North Africa or Northern Africa is the northernmost region of the African continent, separated by the Sahara from Sub-Saharan Africa. ... West Indies redirects here. ... For other uses, see Calabria (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Quito (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see Quito (disambiguation). ... Created in 1542, the Viceroyalty of Peru (in Spanish, Virreinato del Perú) contained most of Spanish-ruled South America until the creation of the separate viceroyalties of New Granada (now Colombia, Ecuador, Panamá and Venezuela, the last-named previously in the Viceroyalty of New Spain) in 1717 and Río... The New Madrid Earthquake, the largest earthquake ever recorded in the contiguous United States, occurred on February 7, 1812. ... North American redirects here. ... For the river in Canada, see Mississippi River (Ontario). ... The Fort Tejon earthquake occurred on January 9, 1857, with an estimated magnitude of 8. ... Lone Pine fault scarp The Great Lone Pine earthquake was one of the largest earthquakes to hit California in recorded history. ... Seismology (from the Greek seismos = earthquake and logos = word) is the scientific study of earthquakes and the movement of waves through the Earth. ... Damage from Charleston earthquake of August 31, 1886 The Charleston Earthquake of 1886 was the largest quake to hit the Southeastern United States. ... Location in Slovenia Coordinates: , Country Founded AD 15 (as Colonia Iulia Aemona) Government  - Mayor and governor Zoran Janković (Lista Zorana Jankovića) Area  - Total 275. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into Catalysis. ... The Assam earthquake of 1897, measuring more than 8 on the Richter scale, destroyed all masonary structures. ...

20th century

• San Francisco Earthquake (1906). Between 7.7 and 8.3 magnitudes; killed approximately 3,000 people and caused around $400 million in damage; most devastating earthquake in California and U.S. history.
• Messina Earthquake (1908). Killed about 60,000 people.
• Gansu earthquake (1920). Killed 200,000 in Gansu province, China.^[13]
• Great Kantō earthquake (1923). On the Japanese island of Honshū, killing over 140,000 in Tokyo and environs.
• 1931 Hawke's Bay earthquake. Occurred in the Hawkes Bay in the North Island of New Zealand leaving 256 dead.
• 1933 Long Beach earthquake
• 1935 Balochistan earthquake at Quetta, Pakistan measuring 7.7 on the Richter scale. Anywhere from 30,000 to 60,000 people died
• 1939 Erzincan earthquake at Erzincan, Turkey measuring 7.9 on the Richter scale.
• Ashgabat earthquake (1948). Earthquake in Ashgabat, Soviet Union measuring 7.3 on the Richter scale killed over 110,000 (2/3 the population of the city).^[14]
• Assam earthquake of 1950 (1950). Earthquake in Assam, India measures 8.6M.
• Kamchatka earthquakes (1952 and 1737), measuring >9.0.
• Great Kern County earthquake (1952). This was second strongest tremor in Southern California history, epicentered 60 miles North of Los Angeles. Major damage in Bakersfield, California and Kern County, California, while it shook the Los Angeles area.
• 1959 Yellowstone earthquake, formed Quake Lake in southern Montana, USA
• Great Chilean Earthquake (1960). Strongest earthquake ever recorded,^[15] 9.5 on Moment magnitude scale, and generated tsunamis throughout the Pacific ocean. It measured 9.6 on the Richter scale. ^[16]
• 1960 Agadir earthquake, Morocco with around 15,000 casualties.
• 1963 Skopje earthquake, measuring 6.1 on the Richter scale kills 1,800 people, leaves another 120,000 homeless, and destroys 80% of the city.
• Good Friday Earthquake (1964) In Alaska, it was the fourth biggest earthquake recorded,^[17] measuring 9.2M. and generated tsunamis throughout the Pacific ocean.
• 1966 Tashkent Earthquake. Ruined most of Tashkent, Uzbek SSR, USSR (now Uzbekistan), tens of thousands of deaths.
• Ancash earthquake (1970). Caused a landslide that buried the town of Yungay, Peru; killed over 40,000 people.
• Sylmar earthquake (1971). Caused great and unexpected destruction of freeway bridges and flyways in the San Fernando Valley, leading to the first major seismic retrofits of these types of structures, but not at a sufficient pace to avoid the next California freeway collapse in 1989.
• Managua earthquake (1972), which killed more than 10,000 people and destroyed 90% of the city. The earthquake took place on December 23, 1972 at midnight.
• Friuli earthquake (1976), Which killed more than 2.000 people in Northeastern Italy and in the Slovenian Littoral on the 6th of May
• Tangshan earthquake (1976). The most destructive earthquake of modern times. The official death toll was 255,000, but many experts believe that two or three times that number died.
• Guatemala 1976 earthquake (1976). Causing 23,000 deaths, 77,000 injuries and the destruction of more than 250,000 homes.
• Vrancea, Romania earthquake (1977). 7.2-7.4 on the Richter scale. Over 1500 people killed, the majority in the Romanian capital Bucharest.
• Coalinga, California earthquake (1983). 6.5 on the Richter scale on a section of the San Andreas Fault. Six people killed, downtown Coalinga, California devastated and oil field blazes.
• Great Mexican Earthquake (1985). Killed over 6,500 people, according to official Mexican government reports,^{[citation needed]} but as many as 30,000 people are thought to have been killed (they disappeared and never reappeared after the initial Earthquakes).
• Great San Salvador Earthquake (October 10, 1986). Killed over 1,500 people.
• Whittier Narrows earthquake (1987).
• 1989 Newcastle earthquake, Australia
• Armenian earthquake (1988). Killed over 25,000.
• Loma Prieta earthquake (1989). Severely affecting Santa Cruz, San Francisco, San Jose and Oakland in California. This is also called the World Series Earthquake. It struck as Game 3 of the 1989 World Series was just getting underway at Candlestick Park in San Francisco. Revealed necessity of accelerated seismic retrofit of road and bridge structures.
• Iran Earthquake (1990). 7.7 on the Richter scale. Killed over 35,000 in Gilan Province, southwest of Caspian sea.^[18]
• Luzon Earthquake (1990). On 16 July 1990, an earthquake measuring 7.7 on the Richter scale struck the island of Luzon, Philippines.
• Landers, California earthquake (1992). Serious damage in the small town of Yucca Valley, California and was felt across 10 states in Western U.S. Another tremor measured 6.4 struck 3 hours later and felt across Southern California.
• August 1993 Guam Earthquake, measuring 8.2 on the Richter scale and lasting 60 seconds.
• 1993 Latur earthquake Latur Earthquake,an earthquake of magnitude 6.3 on Richter Scale rocked the districts of Latur and Osmanabad in Maharashtra in India.The degree of fury was such that dwellings in several villages of these 2 districts were totally converted to debris. In adjoining Karnataka state, 9 people were killed and about 16,000 people injured. A huge number of houses were damaged.^[19]
• Northridge, California earthquake (1994). Damage showed seismic resistance deficiencies in modern low-rise apartment construction.
• Sakhalin earthquake (1995). Measuring 7.6 on the Richter scale, killing over 2,000 people in Sakhalin, Russia.^[20]
• Great Hanshin earthquake (1995). Killed over 6,400 people in and around Kobe, Japan.
• 1998 Afghanistan earthquake (1998). 6.9 on the Richter scale. Some 125 villages were damaged and 4000 people killed.^[21]
• Athens earthquake (1999). 5.9 on the Richter scale, it hit Athens on September 7. Epicentered 10 miles north of the Greek capital, it claimed 143 lives.
• Chi-Chi earthquake (1999) Also called the 921 earthquake. Struck Taiwan on September 21, 1999. Over 2,000 people killed, destroyed or damaged over ten thousand buildings. Caused world computer prices to rise sharply.
• Armenia, Colombia (1999) 6.2 on the Richter scale, Killed over 2,000 in the Colombian Coffee Grown Zone.
• 1999 İzmit earthquake measuring 7.5 on the Richter scale and killed over 17,000 in northwestern Turkey.
• Hector Mine earthquake (1999). 7.1 on the Richter scale, epicentered 30 miles east of Barstow, California, widely felt