This is our collection of interactive rollover flash animations.
- Click links or scroll down to view the available interactive animations.
- Check out our Earth Science Animations and Videos pages.
Interactive Animations
General Basin and Range
Dynamic Planet- Earthquakes & Volcanoes Tectonics
How Are Earthquakes Located- Walk Run Activity Earthquakes
Significant Earthquakes from 2001-2011 NEW! Long Valley Caldera
Pacific Northwest
Pacific Northwest vs Sumatra Subduction Zones
Northwest Plate Rollover Chile vs Sumatra
Subduction Rollover Reveal Pacific Northwest vs Sumatra
Earthquake Depth Rollover Pacific Northwest vs Japan
Interactive Animations
General
Significant Earthquakes from 2001-2011
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Rollover earthquakes to explore the event and generalized tectonics.
Dynamic Planet- Earthquakes & Volcanoes
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Touch buttons to see how earthquakes and Volcanoes align with tectonic plate margins.
How Are Earthquakes Located- Walk Run Activity
Download IRIS one-pager, "How are earthquakes located?"
Download interactive Flash animation that uses a simple model using the arrival times of P and S waves to learn the location of an earthquake epicenter. Although computer algorithms using P wave arrivals are used by scientists today, this method is valid for introductory lessons.
Download PDF background information and links to short video lectures that help understand the method.
Tectonic Plates
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Touch plates to reveal the names of the major tectonic plates.
Basin and Range
Tectonics
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The Basin and Range Province is a high-elevation, internally drained region of the western United States that is currently experiencing active tectonic deformation especially along the northwest margin. The province extends from Mexico north into Oregon, Idaho, and Montana. The region is actively extending in the East/West direction. In other words, Northern California moves away from Colorado, (roughly "stable" North America) at approximately 1 cm/year.
Earthquakes
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Significant or newsworthy earthquakes in the Basin and Range Province. We include only earthquakes over M4, as hundreds of small ones occur every year.
Volcanoes
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Continental rifting causes a thinning of the tectonic plate. As a result, magma is closer to the surface and can rise up through faults producing volcanic activity. "Active" volcanoes are younger than 2,000 years, and have physical evidence that indicates that they could erupt again.
Long Valley Caldera
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Long Valley Caldera is one of the largest calderas on Earth, measuring about 32 kilometers (20 mi) long and 17 kilometers (11 mi) wide. It had one of the largest eruptions on the North American continent.
Pacific Northwest
Pacific Northwest vs Japan
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Learn about the tectonic similarities between Japan and the Pacific Northwest U.S. in this interactive animation.
Also watch the tsunami propagation generated from the M9.0 earthquake in the Pacific Northwest on January 26, 1700 that caused dozens of deaths in Japan. (YouTube)
Pacific Northwest vs Sumatra
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Learn about the tectonic similarities between Sumatra and the Pacific Northwest U.S.
Northwest Plate Rollover
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Learn how the physical geography of the Pacific Northwest reflects the plate tectonic regime.
Subduction Rollover Reveal
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Rollover map to see the relative plate motion in the Pacific Northwest.
Earthquake Depth Rollover
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Learn about the 3 main types of earthquakes in and around a subduction zone.
Earthquake Rollover
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Learn about historic earthquakes in the Pacific Northwest.
Volcanoes Rollover
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Learn about the volcanic peaks of the Pacific Northwest.
Subduction Zone
Chile vs Sumatra
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Learn about the tectonic similarities between the 2010 M8.8 Chilean and 2004 M9.3 Sumatran earthquakes in this interactive animation.
