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The earth's surface is made up of about 15 different major plates that are constantly moving and shifting. In fact, millions of earthquakes occur every year as these plates glide over the earth's mantle. Learn more about why and how earthquakes happen with these interesting earthquake facts.
1. Earthquakes kill approximately 10,000 people each year and have caused an estimated 13 million deaths in the past 4,000 years.
2. Global warming has been linked to more severe and more frequent earthquakes. Specifically, melting glaciers and flooding are changing the pressure on sensitive seismic faults.
3. More earthquakes happen in the Northern Hemisphere than in the Southern Hemisphere.
4. Some shockwaves can travel far enough upward to disturb the ionosphere, which is approximately 50-300 miles (80-480 km) above Earth’s surface.
5. The largest earthquake in recent history struck Chile in 1960. It measured 9.5 on the Richter scale and caused giant ocean waves as far as 6,000 miles (10,000 km) away.
6. On December 16, 1811, an earthquake caused parts of the Mississippi River to flow backwards.
7. An earthquake can release hundreds of times more energy than the nuclear bomb that was dropped on Hiroshima in Japan in 1945.
8. The 1964 Alaska earthquake measured 9.2 on the Richter scale, making it the most powerful earthquake ever recorded in North America and the second most powerful in recorded world history.
9. Several million earthquakes occur each year globally. Many go undetected, either because they are too small to measure or because they occur in remote locations.
10. Scientists believe that animals can detect an earthquake before it happens by sensing electrical signals created by shifting underground rocks.
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