What is a Fault Line and Fault Lines in Turkey

The complex movements of the plates that make up the earth's crust cause energy accumulation in some regions for many years. The fractures and movements that occur as a result of this accumulation are called faults. The fault line refers to the areas where these fractures and movements intensify and become evident.

What is a Fault Line?

The fault line occurs when the stresses and compressions resulting from the friction of two plates against each other accumulate in some weak areas of the earth's crust. Friction between plates causes strain in weak places between large rock masses, which we call "faults". This strain causes the accumulation of strain energy, and over time, this energy turns into a violent fracture and movement, causing an earthquake.

Fault Lines in Turkey

Turkey is located on the most geologically active earthquake zone and hosts three important fault lines: Northern Anatolian Fault Line, Eastern Anatolian Fault Line and Western Anatolian Fault Line. Experts state that the most dangerous among these fault lines is the Western Anatolian Fault Line.

Northern Anatolian Fault Line

The North Anatolian Fault is a right-lateral strike-slip fault. This fault line starts from the west of the Bosphorus, where the northern part of the Anatolian plate collides with Georgia and the Black Sea, and continues under the Sea of Marmara.

Eastern Anatolian Fault Line

The Eastern Anatolian Fault Line is a left-lateral strike-slip fault. This fault line lies in eastern Turkey, in the region where the eastern part of the Anatolian plate collides with the Arabian plate.

Western Anatolian Fault Line

The Western Anatolian Fault Line starts in the west of Turkey, under the Aegean Sea, and is dextral strike-slip. It is known that this fault line continues from the south of the Sea of Marmara and extends to the Island of Crete.

Fault Line Break and Its Consequences

The rupture of the fault line is the trigger for large-scale earthquakes. The first violent movement that occurs as a result of the rupture is called "main shock" or earthquake. This main shock causes the surrounding weak areas to break, and these aftershocks are called "aftershocks" or "aftershocks".

For example, it is thought that the earthquake that occurred in Gaziantep and Kahramanmaraş on February 6 was caused by the rupture of a 30-40 kilometer fault line off the coast of İzmir Seferihisar.

Fault Types

Fault line types are classified according to the characteristics of the movement.

Strike-Slip Fault

Such fault planes are lateral-slip faults that are in a vertical position on the earth and are formed by horizontal slip. The North Anatolian Fault is an example of a right-lateral strike-slip fault.

Normal Slip Fault

As the block on one side of the fault plane rises, the other side falls and moves away. For example, the faults associated with the 1970 Gediz and 1995 Dinar earthquakes are normal slip faults.

Reverse-Slip Fault

Such faults have vertical slip and the blocks come closer to each other. The faults associated with the 1975 Lice earthquake are reverse-slip faults.

Oblique Slip Fault

These are faults in which there is both vertical and horizontal movement along the fault plane.

In Conclusion

Fault lines in Turkey show potential dangers arising from the dynamic interaction of plates in the earth's crust. Fault line breaks can lead to earthquakes and possible disasters. Therefore, continuous scientific research on fault lines and earthquakes is of critical importance to raise awareness on this issue and take precautions.