Faults are a break in the crust of a body such as the earth or moon along with the occurrence of some movement of the rock. The hard outer layer that makes up the Earth's surface is called the crust. It floats on a bed of semi-molten rock and is cracked in places. Each of the cracked sections of the crust is called a plate. Scientists call places where earth movements have left cracks in the surface rock faults. Evidence of plate shifting and stress released by moving solid rock as seen from the broken crust on the Earth's surface. Faults are classified in three different ways: strike-slip, normal and reverse. Strike-slip faulting occurs when two ends of the plate slide past each other horizontally. Normal failures occur when the end of one plate slides vertically along the end of another. The reverse defect occurs when one end of the plate moves vertically towards the end of another plate. Normal and reverse faults give rise to ridges that cause distinctive landforms. Plate movements can be both vertical and horizontal at the same time, producing what is known as an oblique fault. Plate tectonics shows us that the entire world is divided into about twelve giant plates. The six major tectonic plates, as the sections are called, are the African, American, Antarctic, Eurasian, Indian and Pacific plates. Each reaches thousands of miles in length and width. Each specific plate is made up of rock and is approximately forty miles thick. All the dishes fit together like a puzzle. Fittings close to each other which in turn form the earth. When the plates reach very high they become continents, those that are very low form basins. These basins then fill with water and become our oceans. The plates are on the Earth's mantle. The mantle is 2,000 miles thick. The t...... middle of paper ......finds 131 km. The Calaveras Fault is considered a “right-lateral strike-slip fault,” meaning the motion is primarily horizontal. Nearly two-thirds of its presumed surface trace is hidden by ancient landslides and other surface deposits making this fault zone extremely complex. In conclusion, the world we live in has many interesting things. From different types of faults to different types of fault zones. Each with their own interesting facts and information about them. What we know about San Andreas and what it does for the earth, for better or worse, may not be that extensive, but what we do know is that nature will find a way to make something happen to the earth so that it can get more out of it. benefit in some cases. way. So, having this giant bent-looking thing that stretches almost the entire length of the state of California, it kind of benefits us.