Volcanoes and Earthquakes - Research Paper Example

?VOLCANOES AND EARTHQUAKES and Section # of Introduction: Volcanoes and Earthquakes areinvariably results of seismic activity in the Earth’s crust. They have been the harbingers of widespread damage, calamity and bereavement. Scientists and Geologists have studied the occurrence of these natural phenomena for hundreds of years, documenting every movement, every eruption from the Earth’s crust. These calamities cause wide spread damage and therefore, geologists are always trying to predict the next occurring of these events by studying the surrounding earth, weather etc. To some extent prediction related to volcanoes can be made but earthquakes are still not predictable. Scientists are now studying the presence of any relationship between the happenings of these two natural disasters as it will help in better predictability and knowledge of mankind. The essay outlines the occurrences of these two events, the way they are caused, moving towards a discussion over the various common variables that they have in occurrence that might lead to a relationship in their occurrence; this discussion is followed by a conclusion regarding the relationship between volcanic activity and earthquakes. Volcanoes and Earthquakes: Brief Earthquakes have caused widespread damage to human life over the years. There have been earthquakes that have wiped away generations, cities; only to be found later by geologists and historians. With the advanced technology, it has become easier to measure the magnitude and the origin of the earthquake with immense accuracy. Predicting earthquakes is still a mystery and they always catch the human race by surprise. Earthquakes are caused by the shifting of tectonic plates that are present under the Earth’s surface. The ground we consider rock solid, is made up of plates that constantly keep shifting, occasionally shifting rapidly, causing earthquakes in that region. This movement of plate’s releases stress along the geologic faults. These fault lines are considered the boundaries between two plates. It is along these fault lines that earthquakes occur. Interestingly, Earthquakes can also be caused by human activity such as mine blasts and nuclear testing. The epicenter being the exact point on the earth’s surface, under which at the hypocenter is present; hypocenter being the exact point where the movement took place (Caroll, 1997). The thought of volcanoes, brings a mountain with erupting lava in our minds. Volcanoes are almost always associated with fascinating destruction of nature and their blinding rage of destroying everything that comes in their way. However, geologically, a volcano is any opening on the planet’s surface, from which the molten lava can make its way to the surface. From fissure vents to submarine volcanoes; all openings in the earth crust the spew out lava are termed as volcanoes. There is classification based on the kind and composition of lava that comes out of the fissures or openings (Sengupta, 2007). Volcanoes are also classified on the basis of their activity; they are active, dormant or extinct. Active volcanoes erupt regularly with many eruptions scripted in the human history; these eruptions may be months apart, years apart or centuries apart. Dormant volcanoes are the ones who have been quiet (no eruptions) for a long period of time, with no written records of their activity until the day the activity starts again. Extinct volcanoes, as the name implies, are the volcanoes that were active some time but have no activity happening as there is no lava supply (Carol, 1997). Volcanoes and Earthquakes: Relationship? The relationship between the volcanoes and earthquakes is pretty significant. On the face of it, there might not be enough evidence, however, when one studies closely it is evident that one of these surely can trigger the other (Rafferty, 2010). Earthquakes generally occur at tectonic plates and most of the eruptions occur in these volcanic regions only. The movement is caused by the movement of tectonic plates as well as the movement of magma in the volcanoes. Such kinds of earthquakes can serve as triggers and alarms for volcanic activity that is about to take place in that area. In 1980’s, earthquakes served as early warning signs for the eruption of Mount St. Helens. It is also understood that the earthquakes occur when the plates under the Earth’s surface collide, slide or move away from each other. Therefore, such a movement can cause a fault line to open up and serve as a vent for the magma to reach the earth’s surface. When plates collide with each other, pressure is created that is released through a strong earthquake. In a similar fashion, volcanic activity takes place due to divergent or convergent movement of the plates due to which the magma underneath can move towards the surface. All in all, earthquakes in regions where there has been considerable seismic activity can give rise to volcanic activity in that area (Walter, 2007). Evidently, this view is further cemented through the studies carried out for places on the Earth that are seismically active and volcanically active as well. A simple research reveals that earthquake zones and volcanic zones coincide with each other, most of them at least. Geologists also believe that the seismic movement across plates can introduce bubbles or disturbance in the otherwise serene magma present, causing the higher pressure magma to move above the low pressure magma and release through a fault (Sandhyarani, 2010). There is not enough data present, though, to prove a strong connection between the two. Although both the phenomena occur due to similar reasons, a statistically sound correlation can only be developed with data which is sparse in this global context. On the other hand, even volcanic activity is linked with triggering earthquakes in the surrounding areas (US Geological Survey, 2011) Conclusion: Concluding the essay, there are many similarities between the two natural phenomena that occur. The both cause widespread destruction if they occur in populated regions, they are caused due to the movement of tectonic plates; both can be trigger each other. However, their occurrence relationship is not very strong and cannot be used as a predictor for their activity. Whether there is not enough data or technological advancement to prove the connection or is there no connection at all is another side of the story. References Caroll, M. (1997). Volcanoes and Earthquakes. Chariotvictor Ratterfy, J. (2010). Plate tectonics, volcanoes, and Earthquakes. The Rosen Publishing Group Sengupta, M. (2007). Volcanoes and Earthquakes. The Rosen Publishing Group Geological Society of America/Walter, T., Amelung, F. (2007). Volcanic eruptions following M?9 mega thrust earthquakes: Implications for Sumatra-Andaman volcanoes, Vol:35 no:6, pg 539-542. Retrieved April 6, 2011, from http://geology.gsapubs.org/content/35/6/539.short US Geological Survey. (2011, March 17). FAQ about relationships between earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. Retrieved April 7, 2011, from http://volcanoes.usgs.gov/about/faq/faqeq.php Read More