🌍 Why do some places have more earthquakes?

Some places shake more because the ground there is like a big puzzle! 🌎 The pieces of the Earth (called plates) move and bump into each other. When they push or pull, the ground shakes—that's an earthquake! 🏗️ Some places are near where these plates meet, so they shake more often.

For example, places like California or Japan have many earthquakes because they are right where these puzzle pieces meet! �

Earthquakes happen more in certain places because of tectonic plates. 🌋 These are giant rocky pieces that make up Earth's outer shell. They float on hot, melted rock underneath and slowly move around—sometimes crashing, pulling apart, or sliding past each other.

Places near plate boundaries (like the Ring of Fire around the Pacific Ocean) have the most earthquakes. 🏔️ For example, Japan sits where four plates meet, so it gets lots of shakes! Scientists use seismographs to measure earthquakes and keep people safe.

Earthquakes are concentrated in specific regions due to plate tectonics. The Earth's lithosphere (crust and upper mantle) is divided into rigid plates that move over the softer asthenosphere. 🌏 Most earthquakes occur along fault lines at plate boundaries:

• Convergent boundaries: Plates collide (e.g., Himalayas), causing powerful quakes.
• Divergent boundaries: Plates pull apart (e.g., Mid-Atlantic Ridge), creating rifts.
• Transform boundaries: Plates slide past each other (e.g., San Andreas Fault).

The Pacific Ring of Fire accounts for ~90% of earthquakes due to active subduction zones where oceanic plates dive beneath continents. 🚨