Loma Prieta Earthquake

Paper Summary:

Analysis of the October 1989 Northern California earthquake. Creation of the 7.1 magnitude quake by a slip in the San Andreas fault line. Depth of the quake. Occurrence of aftershocks and their magnitude. Areas of devastation; why some areas suffered greater damage than others. Landslides. Probability of a repeat high magnitude earthquake.

From the Paper:

"1989 Loma Prieta Earthquake
The 1989 Loma Prieta Earthquake occurred at 5:04 PM on Tuesday, October 17, 1989. It was measured as a magnitude 7.1 on the Richter scale, a device utilized for measuring earthquake strength. It lasted about 20 seconds and was centered approximately 60 miles south of San Francisco. The tremor could be felt as far south as San Diego and as far east as Western Nevada. This earthquake was pinpointed along the San Andreas Fault line, long considered one of the most dangerous and active portions of the fault.


The famed San Andreas fault line runs along a northwesterly direction about 800 miles from the Gulf of California up to Cape Mendocino just north of San Francisco. This particular fault has been the source of many large quakes, including the 7.0 1838 quake on the..."

More papers on Loma Prieta Earthquake:

• Term Paper # 280 : "The Loma Prieta Earthquake in San Francisco"
• Descriptive Essay # 145602 : "Economic Effects of a Bay Area Earthquake"
• Research Paper # 102648 : "Plate Tectonics in California"

APA Citation:

MLA Citation: