What are seismic waves?

1 Answer
Suryin =)
Nov 23, 2015

Earthquake waves

Explanation:

There are three main types of seismic waves according to its characteristic speed and manner of travel:

Primary waves or P waves #rarr# travel the fastest #rarr# travel through solids, liquids, and gases #rarr# push-pull waves #rarr# causes rock to move back and forth.

Secondary waves or S waves#rarr#travel slower than p waves #rarr# travel only through solids#rarr# causes rock to move side to side.

Surface waves or L waves#rarr# slowest seismic waves #rarr# travel from the focus directly upward to the epicenter#rarr# move along the earth's surface up and down #rarr# cause the most of the damage during earthquake because they bend and twist the earth's surface.

Related questions
See all questions in The Planets
Impact of this question
2445 views around the world
You can reuse this answer
Creative Commons License