Elastic Rebound in a Subduction Zone

Oblique view of a highly generalized animation of a subduction zone where an oceanic plate is subducting beneath a continental plate. (See sketch below for parts.) This scenario can happen repeatedly on a 100-500 year cycle. The process which produces a mega-thrust earthquake would generate a tsunami, not depicted here.

More into at:
http://www.iris.edu/hq/programs/education_and_outreach/aotm/5

Category:

Education

Tags:

• iris
• seismology
• science
• earth
• earthquakes
• animation
• aotm

[WeAreFunniest]

Thanks mate

[kklala19]

haha i was the 12000 person to watch this!

[policydynamics]

Interesting. They say that the next big earthquake in the Pacific Northwest is going to result from this very phenomenon - at the Cascadia subduction zone. Question: is seaward uplift taking place there, can it be measured, to what extent has it occurred since the last major quake in 1700, and is it comparible to the uplift that occurred just prior to previous major quakes?

[SnowVixen89]

Ouch! Watching the strain build up like that looks painful to me!

[SnowVixen89]

*applause*

[terran97]

thank you for posting :)