How does an earthquake happen?
The entire earth’s crust is broken into plates which float on the semi-molten lower mantle with their edges right next to each other. When the plates push or slide fast along each other, they create large amount of pressure and tension. Rocks can absorb this pressure for hundreds or thousands of years but eventually when the strain crosses its limit, the rocks suddenly snap and move into a new position. Shaking the gourd and releasing all the spent-up energy in the form of an earthquake.
The vibrations spread from the centre of focus of the earthquake and the surface immediately above it is called epicenter. It is at this place that the earthquake is at its most damaging form.
