What are faults, and how are they associated wth earthquakes?

Answer 1

Faults are cracks in the earth's Lithosphere caused by stresses created by the movement of tectonic plates.There are quite a number of earth faults but they can be grouped mainly into 3 categories:
1.Strike Slip Faults:-Occuring in areas where two plates slide over each other.
2.Thrust Faults:-Occuring in areas where two plates are pushed against each other.
3.Normal Faults:-Occuring in regions where two plates are pulled apart.
The roots of earthquakes lie in stressed regions of the earths Lithosphere.These stressed regions have pressure building up on the fault lines which in time fail in an area called the focus of the resulting earthquake(the spot on the earths surface is called the epicenter of the quake where most damage occurs).When such faults fail,seismic waves are released which move through the earth causing it to ripple and even break apart.This release of waves can continue for hours and months after,several smaller quakes can be observed within the radius of the quake-aftershocks.

Answer 2

Faults are fractures (large or small scale) in the Earth's surface along which there is/has been an appreciable movement. They can be located at plate boundaries or where there has been some sort of stress from the motion at plate boundaries (crustal thinning or thickening or shear forces). Faults are associated with EQs because EQs happen along fault lines. These faults do not move smoothly and tend to build up a great deal of energy. When they finally release, that energy is released as an EQ.

Answer 3

A fault line is a place where two continental plates slide over each other very slowly. The world isn't solid - the crust is made of several large pieces of land that overlap. When these plates slide over each other sometimes they get stuck. When they get stuck then energy builds up at the fault line and will eventually release this energy as an earthquake.

Answer 4

faults are cracks in the Earth. (and it's not my fault that there are fault's...)
plate tectonics move, causing the faults.
plate movement causes earthquakes

Answer 5

CRACKS (in the earths crust)

if you still need an explanation........ (I'll ask how old you are)