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California sits along the San Andreas Fault. Here, two slabs of Earth's crust, called tectonic plates, slowly grind past one another. As this happens the plates snag on one another and build up tension. Every so often the plates slip and this tension is released in the form of earthquakes.

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10y ago
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12y ago

Californian towns and cities get frequent earthquakes every year, because it lies on the San Andreas Fault which is one of the tectonic plates of the Earth. Oregon & Washington State also lie on the San Andreas Fault, but California & Alaska get more than them.

Source(s): What I learned in school

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13y ago

earthquakes happen mostly in California because there is a lot of land and water and they are at the surface of a continent so the tectonic plates rub together to form an earthquake as well as mountains and volcanoes.

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13y ago

Earthquakes in California are a product of a convergence between tectonic plates. The softer oceanic plate collides with, and underruns the harder North-American plate. The energy waves produced by this collision can sometimes be strong enough for us to experience on the surface.

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13y ago

because it is in between two plate boundaries which when they collide it causes erruptions or earthquakes.

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12y ago

California is very close to the fault lines such as the San Andreas fault. This fault is a crack in the earth that pushes against each other and causes earthquakes.

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10y ago

cuz it is

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Q: Why are earthquakes more common in California?
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Is it predicted that there will be an earthquake in California?

Yes. Earthquakes are a common occurrence in California, and some of the faults have been known to produce major earthquakes. It is inevitable that more major earthquakes will strike California in the future, but there is no way of knowing when or where they will be centered.


Who has more earthquakes California or Massachusetts?

California has more earthqakes than Massachusetts


Why do earthquakes happen in California more often than Texas?

more techtonic plate coliding in California


What does rock formation have to do with earthquakes?

Nothing. It all has to do with plate tectonics.They push up rock from the crust causing earthquakes. There are plates in places like California, which is why earthquakes are common.


Where do earthquakes occur most often?

Earthquakes commonly occur near tectonic plates when they rub together. A common place for earthquakes in the Unites States is California.


What state has second to the most earthquakes?

California next to Alaska, but California's quakes are more damaging.


What events are common to Hawaii California and Georgia due to plate tectonics and plate activity?

Earthquakes.


Who has more earthquakes Japan or California?

Japan. It has a lot of earthquakes, and is one of the most affected areas in the world. Because of their technology level (compared to countries like Indonesia and Fiji), Japan is the country with the most earthquakes reported each year. Though, that doesn't mean it's the country with the most earthquakes. But it certainly has more earthquakes than California.


Has California had any hurricanes or earthquakes?

California has had many earthquakes, but no recorded hurricanes.


What city is more likely to experience earthquakes Atlanta Georgia or Oakland California?

California get a lot more earthquakes then Gerogia. Gerogia has alot of floods and hurricanes. You can get all of your quick answers here on wiki answers.com


Where do earthquakes hit most often?

Earthquakes and volcanoes are more common along tectonic plate boundaries.


Why does Florida have less earthquakes than California?

California has more earthquakes then Florida, because California sits along the San Andreas Fault line. ( )-improvement, actually California sits on a series of many fault lines, the San Andreas only being one of them. San Andreas runs most of the length of the coast of California and is well known because it has a hard "kink" near LA which causes more violent earthquakes when it shifts, and can actually be seen in the topography of some areas of California from overhead.These fault lines are also a part of the "ring of fire" which causes the majority of the earthquakes and volcanoes along the West Coast of N America, Japan, and many of the Island chains of the Pacific.