The story so far: Recently a powerful earthquake of magnitude 5.9 on the Richter scale struck a remote town in Afghanistan, killing over a thousand and injuring many more. According to the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency, a 5.9 on the Richter scale is roughly equivalent to 37 times the energy released by the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima. Experts are still trying to figure out the best early warning system to mitigate the damage caused by earthquakes.
How do earthquakes happen?
According to the theory of plate tectonics, the Earth’s crust and upper mantle are made of large rigid plates that can move relative to one another. Slip on faults near the plate boundaries can result in earthquakes. The point inside the Earth where the earthquake rupture starts is called the focus or hypocentre. The point directly above it on the surface of the Earth is the epicentre.
