Probing planet Earth
I can describe S waves and P waves produced by earthquakes and how they move through different parts of the Earth.
Probing planet Earth
I can describe S waves and P waves produced by earthquakes and how they move through different parts of the Earth.
Slide deck
Lesson details
Key learning points
- Earthquakes usually occur near to the edges of tectonic plates
- P waves and S waves are produced deep underground where tectonic plates slip and cause vibrations in rock
- P waves are longitudinal waves and travel through liquid
- S waves are transverse waves and cannot travel through liquid layers inside Earth
- P waves and S waves provide evidence for the internal structure of Earth
Common misconception
Many students think the mantle is liquid or semi-liquid. Some think it contains soil or water.
The mantle is almost all solid rock. Less than 1% of it is liquid e.g. at spreading plate boundaries, subduction zones and hot-spots.
Keywords
Earthquake - An earthquake is caused by the sudden sliding movement of tectonic plates against each other.
S wave - S waves are transverse seismic waves that travel through solids but not liquids.
P wave - P waves are longitudinal seismic waves that travel at different speeds through solids and liquids.
Transverse - A transverse wave is where the wave oscillates perpendicular to the direction of travel.
Longitudinal - A longitudinal wave is where the wave oscillates along the direction of travel with areas of compression and rarefaction.
Licence
This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2024), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0 except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).
Video
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Worksheet
Starter quiz
6 Questions
A wave that has too high a frequency to hear.
A wave used in mobile phone communications.
A wave that we detect with our eyes.