I had never felt an earthquake until this year, and since then, I\u2019ve felt three. Is there an increase in earthquakes in New York City? How and why have they become so frequent?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
An earthquake is caused by<\/a> the sudden movement of Earth\u2019s crust. Tectonic plates are constantly shifting, but they sometimes get stuck at their edges due to friction. When the stress at these edges overcomes the friction holding them in place, the plates suddenly move. This releases energy that travels through the Earth\u2019s crust, causing the shaking sensation. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Earthquakes are measured<\/a> by two factors: magnitude and intensity. Magnitude is the total energy the earthquake releases. It’s measured on a scale from 1 to 10, with 10 representing the most powerful earthquakes. Intensity measures how strong the shaking feels at a specific location. It\u2019s measured using Roman numerals from I to XII (1 to 12), with I meaning the earthquake wasn\u2019t felt and XII meaning there was extreme shaking.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Depending on how close you are to the shifting tectonic plates, this shaking can cause serious damage<\/a> to towns and cities. So far, the earthquakes we’ve felt in New York City haven\u2019t been strong enough to cause major harm, but at higher magnitudes, they can be deadly. An earthquake itself isn\u2019t necessarily dangerous, but how it affects manmade structures is. People inside collapsing buildings or struck by debris can be seriously injured or killed. In some cases, earthquakes can knock down power lines, start fires, or even cause dam walls to collapse, leading to flooding.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This year, the earthquakes felt in New York City<\/a> have ranged in magnitude from 1.6 to 3.0. While not considered large, they\u2019ve still been noticeable to some. Yanling Li (V) said, \u201cIt\u2019s really strange. Growing up in New York City, I don\u2019t recall experiencing any earthquakes, even if it was of low magnitude. I didn\u2019t feel the one last week, but I remember there was a more severe one last April. The glass of water on my table was visibly shaking.\u201d For her, like many longtime New Yorkers, earthquakes are something she\u2019s only recently started to notice. So, what\u2019s causing these frequent earthquakes?<\/p>\n\n\n\n