Day 6: San Andreas Fault (35°07'N, 119°39'W)
We just finished our last day in San Francisco and my cruise is officially over! I’ve had a great time and checking out the San Andreas Fault has been awesome. I learned all about how the 1906 San Francisco Earthquake was caused. The San Andreas Fault is a transform fault that’s about 810 miles long! It runs through California which is on the West Coast of the USA. It forms the boundary between the Pacific Plate and the North American Plate. The fault is plainly visible in the Carrizo Plain, in Southern Cali. This picture was taken by my friend I met on the cruise who decided to take a helicopter tour of the fault.
The transform fault causes lots of earthquakes because the two plates are sliding against each other. This map shows the direction of movement of the two plates
This fault doesn’t cause volcanoes or mountains, just a crack at the boundary and frequent earthquakes. Scientists say that the Southern segment of the fault is capable of an 8.1 earthquake that could occur up to just 40 miles away from L.A! It would kill thousands of people and cost billions of dollars. The earliest recorded earthquake along the San Andreas Fault was in 1680 and was of about 7.8 magnitude. The most recent significant earthquake was in January with a magnitude of 4.5.
The San Francisco earthquake of 1906 was of a magnitude 7.9 and resulted in a fire that is considered one of the worst natural disasters in the history of the United States. It was caused by a rupture on the San Andreas Fault, it rupture the northern third of the fault for a distance of 296 miles with a maximum surface displacement of about 20 feet.
This video shows the devastation caused by the earthquake and fire. It shows the city before and after the fire.
That was a really sad way to end by trip. =( but it was still really interesting and I had a really great time. I'm headed back to Nashville now and I'm working on a project that I will upload soon.
Love Ya'll
Nancy
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