A seismic wave is an elastic disturbance that propagates through the Earth or along its surface as a result of sudden stress changes, typically from fault rupture, volcanic activity, or anthropogenic sources such as explosions. Governed by the equations of elastodynamics, seismic waves are categorized into body waves (P and S waves) and surface waves (Rayleigh and Love waves), each with distinct particle motion, dispersion, and attenuation characteristics. Their propagation properties—velocity, amplitude, frequency content, and scattering—are strongly controlled by the elastic moduli, density, anisotropy, and heterogeneity of the medium, making seismic waves a primary observational phenomenon in seismology and Earth structure studies.
An international research team may have found an explanation for seismic anomalies, the noticeable deviations in the behavior of earthquake waves, in Earth's inner core.
Earth Sciences
Dec 10, 2025
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Why do some earthquakes release more energy than others? A research team led by Prof. Dr. Armin Dielforder from the University of Greifswald has managed to demonstrate a clear physical connection between the energy released ...
Earth Sciences
Nov 21, 2025
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A mysterious swarm of earthquakes that occurred near the Greek island of Santorini in early 2025 was caused by rebounding sheets of magma slicing through Earth's crust, according to a new study by an international team involving ...
Earth Sciences
Nov 20, 2025
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EU researchers are exploring how undersea communication cables can double-up as environmental and seismic sensors—a potential game-changer for early warning systems.
Earth Sciences
Nov 7, 2025
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Recently, Science put out an article detailing new research on the Myanmar earthquake that occurred on March 28, 2025. In one of these studies, Shengji Wei and colleagues analyze data on the event and provide insight on multiple ...
The impact of an earthquake on people and property depends not only on the earthquake's characteristics like magnitude and depth, but also on local soil conditions, which contribute to the so-called "site effect." Mapping ...
Earth Sciences
Oct 30, 2025
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In some parts of Earth's interior, seismic waves travel at different speeds depending on the direction in which they are moving through the layers of rock in Earth's interior. This property is known as seismic anisotropy, ...
Earth Sciences
Oct 21, 2025
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Most Californians are familiar with earthquakes. But researchers say the state faces an overlooked threat: "supershear" earthquakes that move so fast they outrun their own seismic waves.
Earth Sciences
Sep 24, 2025
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One of the worst earthquakes in European history ripped through Portugal in 1755, causing a tsunami, fires and shaking that killed tens of thousands of people and caused widespread destruction. Another less well-documented ...
A set of instruments shut off almost 50 years ago are still producing useful results. It's the seismometers left by the Apollo missions to monitor moonquakes, which, as the name suggests, are earthquakes but on the moon. ...
Planetary Sciences
Aug 25, 2025
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