whats all this about the san andreas fault could buckle and cause destruction?
Jul 21, 2010
in
Earthquake Questions
i read it on some weird site i dont remember what but it mentioned that the san andreas fault in california could buckle or something? whats this mean? what the hec?
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5 comments
Andy on July 21, 2010 at 3:18 pm
The mantle isn’t magma, it’s nearly all solid rock that only melts from decompression when it rises towards the crust. The San Andreas fault is a conservative plate boundary so plates are not moving towards or away from each other which is why there is no magmatism associated with it. Plate motion is driven by slab pull force and ridge push force, not by convection currents in the mantle. Otherwise, pretty good.
Ricky D on July 21, 2010 at 3:18 pm
Yes, the San Andreas fault is the source of many destructive earthquakes in that area, and the Big One is expected to be pretty devastating when it comes.
Philip W on July 21, 2010 at 3:18 pm
To buckle: "to bend, crumble, or break. To give way, collapse. To succumb to pressure."
They’re talking about earthquakes. Nothing special, just earthquakes.
Linh N on July 21, 2010 at 3:18 pm
Okay, high-school science lesson coming up:
There are four layers to Earth: the crust (that we’re standing on now), the mantle (which is basically magma), the outer core, and the inner core. The crust is split up into what’s called "tectonic plates", that float on top of the magma. Sort of like pieces of bread floating on soup.
The places where these plates touch, are called "fault lines". When the plates move towards or away from each other (because of movement in the magma; remember, pieces of bread on soup), they can cause earthquakes, form new land (because of magma cooling as it reaches the surface), or create mountains or volcanoes.
The reason that the San Andreas fault is a big deal is because it’s a place of tremendous stress and energy. Oh, and there’s a ton of cities and such built on top of it. If another ‘quake happens along the fault line, it is very likely (given how much that area has developed and expanded in the past century since the Great Earthquake (or whatever the deuce it’s called)) that there will be a great loss of life and property.
Anne M on July 21, 2010 at 3:18 pm
It wont buckle, the North American and Pacific plates are sliding past one another and when the rocks get stuck and finally break thats where you get those big ass earthquakes. Mass destruction if you get a big earthquake, but nothing crazier than that. Weird websites arent good sources of info.