Why Are There Earthquakes in Wellington? - A WebQuest

Room 20 are learning why we have earthquakes in Wellington.  These GNS links should explain why.  See if you can answer the questions after reading the page linked.


Earthquakes at a Plate Boundary
1. What two tectonic plates does New Zealand sit on the boundaries of?
2. What are the good things about earthquakes?

Tectonic Plates and Plate Boundaries
1. Name all 7 or 8 of the Earth's tectonic plates?
2. Name the 3 types of plate boundaries and what they are.  Try to think of a way of explaining them using your hands.

Plate Collision in New Zealand
1. What happens when two tectonic plates collide?
2. What happens to the Australian Plate when it collides with the Pacific Plate in the south of the South Island?
3. What happens to the Pacific Plate when it collides with the Pacific Plate in the north of the North Island?
4. What happens to both of the plates in between.
5. Use your hands to show what is happening in the diagrams.

Different types of Faults
1. Copy the diagrams shown and give them a title using the keywords from the matching description.
2. Write a description of each fault in your own words - read and write what you remember.

Where do earthquakes happen in New Zealand?
1. Analyse the two diagrams by studying the patterns.  What do they tell you?

Wellington Fault
1. What is the main Wellington fault line called?
2. Watch the video and take notes. It is about 10 minutes long.

Wellington's Shaky Foundations
1. What is happening to the Australian and Pacific plates underneath Wellington?
2. How far below Wellington is the subduction zone?
3. What is the rate that the plates are colliding?

How often to earthquakes occur along the fault?
1. When was the last time the Wellington Fault ruptured?
2. How often will there be a major earthquake on the Wellington Fault?
3. Copy the diagram, including the names of the other active faults in the Wellington region.
4. When did the Wairarapa Fault last rupture?
5. Find out how Wellington changed after that earthquake here.


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