GEOLOGY

Detailed explanation-1: -Faults are cracks in the earth’s crust along which there is movement. These can be massive (the boundaries between the tectonic plates themselves) or very small. If tension builds up along a fault and then is suddenly released, the result is an earthquake.

Detailed explanation-2: -Stress causes the build up of strain, which causes the deformation of rocks and the Earth’s crust. Compressional stresses cause a rock to shorten. Tensional stresses cause a rock to elongate, or pull apart. Shear stresses causes rocks to slip past each other.

Detailed explanation-3: -A fault is formed in the Earth’s crust as a brittle response to stress. Generally, the movement of the tectonic plates provides the stress, and rocks at the surface break in response to this.

Detailed explanation-4: -In normal faults, the hanging wall drops down relative to the footwall. Normal faults are caused by tensional stress that pulls the crust apart, causing the hanging wall to slide down relative to the footwall.