Mapping+earthquakes

PART A:

You've heard of Earthquakes in California, but when was the last time you heard about an earthquake in Colorado? The purpose of this activity is to plot the location of notable earthquakes in Colorado, as well as in the greater United States.


 * For each map (Colorado and USA), research and pick 5 - 7 notable earthquakes and plot these on your map.
 * On the back of each map, record the year this earthquake occurred, the magnitude of this earthquake, the location of this earthquake (nearest city or landmark will do), and a description of the impact of this earthquake on Earth's systems.
 * The number of earthquakes you record, as well as the detail of your descriptions, will determine your grade on this assignment (5 basic descriptions for each map is the minimum needed for a C grade, 7 detailed descriptions will earn you an A+).

What does "notable" mean? Notable means newsworthy - the kind of thing you'd hear about on TV or read about in the newspaper. For the USA, generally this means BIG! However, sometimes big earthquakes are concentrated in certain areas, so try to pick a variety of earthquakes in a variety of locations. For Colorado, "notable" may be considerably smaller than it is for the rest of the US, so pick earthquakes that are interesting.

Here are a few websites to get you started: USGS - Colorado Earthquake Information USGS - United States Earthquake Information USGS - Largest Earthquakes in the USA

PART B:

How would you describe our earthquake risk here in Colorado? What about in California? Alaska? Oklahoma? New Jersey?

The purpose of this part of our activity is to create a "Threat Level" map of the United States - a color-coded map that represents the risk to humans due to earthquakes.


 * Create a threat level rating system for earthquake risk, and a key for your map that describes each threat level. Your rating system should include at least 5 levels, and should take into account both the frequency and magnitude of earthquakes around the USA.
 * Color your USA map according to your key to indicate the threat level of different geographic regions of the United States. In order to accomplish this, you will need to expand your research on earthquakes in the USA. Use this page to get started: USGS - Historic Earthquakes in the United States
 * Look through the list on the page above, and use the number and magnitude of earthquakes in each state to determine that state's threat level. It may be helpful to look at this list while you create your threat level rating system.