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Geology & Earth Sciences vocabulary · Earthquakes & Seismology

Seismic hazard

Meaning in geology & earth sciences, with examples

nounCommon term

In geology & earth sciences, seismic hazard means: The likelihood that a given place will experience earthquake shaking of a certain strength within a certain period of time.

In Turkish: deprem tehlikesi, sismik tehlike

How it is used

Shown on seismic hazard maps and used in building codes. In Turkey, AFAD publishes the Turkey Earthquake Hazard Map, which engineers use in design. Hazard depends on faults and ground conditions; risk also takes buildings and people into account.

Example sentences

  1. The new hospital was designed for the high seismic hazard in the region.

  2. Seismic hazard is highest near active faults and on soft ground.

Common collocations

  • seismic hazard map
  • seismic hazard assessment
  • high seismic hazard
  • seismic risk
  • earthquakeA sudden shaking of the ground caused by rocks breaking and slipping along a fault, which releases energy as seismic waves.
  • faultA fracture in the Earth's crust along which the rocks on either side have moved. Sudden slip on a fault causes an earthquake.
  • intensityA measure of how strongly an earthquake's shaking is felt and how much damage it causes at a particular place. It usually decreases with distance from the source.
  • liquefactionThe process in which loose, water-saturated sand or silt loses its strength during strong earthquake shaking and behaves like a liquid.

More terms: Earthquakes & Seismology

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