Question

Earthquakes occur at faults, which are breaks in rocks (usually at the boundary of tectonic plates), along which the surrounding rocks move. This diagram shows a fault.

What type of fault is this?

The image illustrates two tectonic plates sliding past each other horizontally. The fault line, represented by a solid line, cuts across the diagram diagonally. One plate is shown moving to the left while the other plate moves to the right. The arrows on either side of the fault line indicate the direction of movement.



Responses

A normal fault because two pieces of Earth’s crust are being pulled away from each other.
A normal fault because two pieces of Earth’s crust are being pulled away from each other.

A strike slip fault because two pieces of Earth’s crust are sliding past each another in opposite directions.
A strike slip fault because two pieces of Earth’s crust are sliding past each another in opposite directions.

A reverse fault because two pieces of Earth’s crust are being pushed towards each another.
A reverse fault because two pieces of Earth’s crust are being pushed towards each another.

A normal fault because two pieces of Earth’s crust are sliding past each other in opposite directions.
A normal fault because two pieces of Earth’s crust are sliding past each other in opposite directions.

Answer 1

A strike‑slip fault — the two blocks are sliding past each other horizontally in opposite directions (a transform/strike‑slip motion).