Earthquake From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jump to navigation Jump to search For other uses, see Earthquake (disambiguation) . "Seismic event" redirects here. For seismic migration, see Seismic migration . Earthquake epicenters occur mostly along tectonic plate boundaries, and especially on the Pacific Ring of Fire. Global plate tectonic movement Part of a series on Earthquakes Types [show] Causes [show] Characteristics [show] Measurement [show] Prediction [show] Other topics [show] Earth Sciences Portal Category Related topics v t e An earthquake (also known as a quake , tremor or temblor ) is the shaking of the surface of the Earth, resulting from the sudden release of energy in the Earth 's lithosphere that creates seismic waves . Earthquakes can range in size from those that are so weak that they canno...