Transformers 4: Tectonics

Hey again,

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/aa/
USGS_Shakemap_-_1995_Gulf_of_Aqaba_earthquake.jpg

Its day 4 of my journey and I've learning more than I did in my four years of high school. I hope you guys, my readers, are enjoying this journey just as much as I am. I can honestly tell you that I have never had so much respect for the Tectonic Plates. They really are game makers of the earth. But enough of me talking, you're reading for the science...so here it is: I'm now in Saudi Arabia checking out a transforming boundary between the Arabian Plate and the African Plate on the Gulf of Aqaba ( 28.48°N, 34.50°E). There are tons of earthquakes here and I came here to figure out why.

A transforming boundary is simply when two plates, side by side, rub against each other. All of this friction can create fractures and also creates extreme earthquake activity. There are almost constant earthquakes in this region but the most recent big earthquakes were in 1995 and several people died.

http://www.divediscover.whoi.edu
/tectonics/tectonics-slide.html

Thanks for reading and TA-TA for now :)

http://m9.i.pbase.com/o6/93/329493/1/
84850859.5BrbyM9F.TIPTUNFeb07018.jpg