Ever wondered how common earthquakes really are? The answer is very, as this incredible video shows.
This animation shows every recorded earthquake in sequence as they occurred from January 1, 2001, through December 31, 2015, at a rate of 30 days per second. The earthquake hypocenters first appear as flashes then remain as colored circles before shrinking with time so as not to obscure subsequent earthquakes. The size of the circle represents the earthquake magnitude while the color represents its depth within the earth.
As the quakes pile up, the outlines of the planet’s tectonic plates and other hotspots become very clear.
Originally published by Cosmos as All the world’s earthquakes, 2001–2015
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