Why Do Earthquakes Happen Under the Ocean?

Imagine the ocean floor is like a giant puzzle made of big pieces called plates. When these plates move, they can push or pull each other, and sometimes that makes the ground shake deep underwater. This shaking is an underwater earthquake, and it can send waves across the sea.

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Examples

  1. A whale suddenly jumps out of the water because a big underwater earthquake shook it
  2. Underwater earthquakes made waves that crashed into a small island, changing its shape
  3. Fishermen saw the sea floor move beneath their boat as an underwater earthquake happened

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