GEOLOGY

Detailed explanation-1: -S waves are more dangerous than P waves because they have greater amplitude and produce vertical and horizontal motion of the ground surface. The slowest waves, surface waves, arrive last. They travel only along the surface of the Earth.

Detailed explanation-2: -As their name suggests, surface waves travel just below the surface of the ground. Although they move even more slowly than S-waves, they can be much larger in amplitude and are often the most destructive type of seismic wave.

Detailed explanation-3: -S waves arrive next and cause a structure to vibrate from side to side. They are the most damaging waves, because buildings are more easily damaged from horizontal motion than from vertical motion.

Detailed explanation-4: -The third general type of earthquake wave is called a surface wave, reason being is that its motion is restricted to near the ground surface. Such waves correspond to ripples of water that travel across a lake. Surface waves in earthquakes can be divided into two types.

Detailed explanation-5: -The slowest (and latest to arrive on seismograms) are surface waves, such as the L wave. L waves are named for the Cambridge mathematician A.E.H. Love who first described them. The surface waves are generally the largest recorded from an earthquake.