When many earthquakes are studied, there is another common pattern that emerges: a "Shadow Zone". This is an area, for any earthquake, on the Earth where direct S-waves don't arrive at all and P waves are refracted. What do you think causes these P waves to be refracted? *

Sudden decrease in the velocity at the boundary.

Explanation:

The shadow zone is the zone of the earth from angular distances of 104° to 140° from a known earthquake that does not directly receive any P waves. Now, this shadow zone occurs as a result of S waves getting stopped completely by the liquid core and the P waves being refracted by the liquid core.

From earlier seismic discoveries, this boundary which is the shadow zone that does not directly receive any P-waves was found to be due to the fact that the P-waves were refracted inwards as a result of the sudden decrease in velocity at the boundary.

first let us lay out the formula for potential

and kinetic energy:

pe = mgh

ke = (mv^2)/2

where: m=mass, v=velocity, g=gravitational

acceleration, h=height

calculating for mass using the known values of

pe:

340j = m (9.81 m/s^2) (50ft) (1m/3.28ft)

m = 2.27 kg

the law of conservation of energy states that

energy is neither created nor destroyed. therefore, the change in kinetic

energy from 50 ft to 35 ft would be equal to the change in potential energy

from 50 ft to 35 ft. however it would be opposite in signs since one is losing

while other is gaining.

ke(35ft) – ke(50ft) = - [ pe(35ft) – pe(50ft]

ke(50ft) = 0 since the brick is initially at rest

ke(35ft) = 340j - 2.27kg (9.81 m/s^2) (35ft)

(1m/3.28 ft)

ke(35ft)

= 102.38 j