<p>As pointed out in the comments, some do prefer to use different terms for <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quake_%28natural_phenomenon%29">quakes</a> on other bodies, and you can see <a href="https://scholar.google.com/scholar?hl=en&amp;q=marsquake&amp;btnG=&amp;as_sdt=1%2C44&amp;as_sdtp=">here</a> that "marsquake" does have scholarly usage. That said, there is also scholarly usage for <a href="https://scholar.google.com/scholar?q=%22earthquake+on+mars%22&amp;btnG=&amp;hl=en&amp;as_sdt=0%2C44">"earthquake"</a> in this context. If you think about it, this makes sense given that one definition of "earth" is <a href="https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/earth">"the substance of the land surface"</a>, i.e. the ground. This definition of "earth" is agnostic to which terrestrial planet the land surface is on.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-09-22T14:44:00.340Z
2016-09-22T14:44:00.340Z
called2voyage
<p>Or are seismic phenomenon named differently when they happen on other celestial bodies? If so, what are they called?</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-09-22T13:58:19.207Z
Please read from [wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Starquake_%28astrophysics%29)
Knu8
CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-09-22T18:09:04.047Z
It could be called marsquake, or?
ott--
CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-09-22T20:29:58.820Z
Not if no one is around to feel the shake ;-)
LocalFluff
CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-09-22T21:10:23.707Z
While not an answer to your question, without plate tectonics, I wonder if Mars actually has "quakes".  Volcanic eruptions which shake the ground some, sure.   Those would be richter scale measurable events but eruptions aren't quakes.   I'm not sure it has Mars-quakes or Earthquakes, which might be specific to plate tectonics.  Perhaps some core settling could lead to a quake occasionally.   (or am I being too literal?)
userLTK
CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-09-23T15:59:49.770Z
In English, "earthquake" means that the "earth" (ie: "soil", "ground") shakes. It does not mean that the "Earth" (planet earth) shakes.  Consider if the whole! "planet Earth" "shook" for some reason (ie: an enormous asteroid impact): you wouldn't call that an "earthquake!"
Fattie
CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-09-23T22:55:57.640Z
@userLTK No, a tectonic quake is only one type - the one we hear about most often due to their side effects. There are at least three other causes of quakes I can think of: collapse, explosion, and volcanic.
Howard Pautz
CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-09-23T23:03:27.623Z
Nit - (too) many years ago when I took a few geology courses, including one specifically on the geology of our planets, the profs always called them *earthquakes.* When an observant student asked your same question, the instructor, a geologist who'd worked for NASA, just shrugged and said, "it's up to you, we all know what you mean." Not sure about current usage, however.
Howard Pautz
CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-09-26T13:34:04.703Z
@userLTK Howard is correct. Plate-tectonic-events are the most common cause of quakes on Earth, but earthquakes include any "shaking" events.
called2voyage
<planet><terminology><geology><quake>
If an earthquake happens on Mars, is it still an earthquake?
Etheryte
# If an earthquake happens on Mars, is it still an earthquake?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2016-09-22)

Or are seismic phenomenon named differently when they happen on other celestial bodies? If so, what are they called?

**Tags:** planet, terminology, geology, quake

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: Please read from [wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Starquake_%28astrophysics%29)  
> **username_2**: It could be called marsquake, or?  
> **username_3**: Not if no one is around to feel the shake ;-)  
> **username_4**: While not an answer to your question, without plate tectonics, I wonder if Mars actually has "quakes".  Volcanic eruptions which shake the ground some, sure.   Those would be richter scale measurable events but eruptions aren't quakes.   I'm not sure it has Mars-quakes or Earthquakes, which might be specific to plate tectonics.  Perhaps some core settling could lead to a quake occasionally.   (or am I being too literal?)  
> **username_5**: In English, "earthquake" means that the "earth" (ie: "soil", "ground") shakes. It does not mean that the "Earth" (planet earth) shakes.  Consider if the whole! "planet Earth" "shook" for some reason (ie: an enormous asteroid impact): you wouldn't call that an "earthquake!"  
> **username_6**: @username_4 No, a tectonic quake is only one type - the one we hear about most often due to their side effects. There are at least three other causes of quakes I can think of: collapse, explosion, and volcanic.  
> **username_6**: Nit - (too) many years ago when I took a few geology courses, including one specifically on the geology of our planets, the profs always called them *earthquakes.* When an observant student asked your same question, the instructor, a geologist who'd worked for NASA, just shrugged and said, "it's up to you, we all know what you mean." Not sure about current usage, however.  
> **username_7**: @username_4 Howard is correct. Plate-tectonic-events are the most common cause of quakes on Earth, but earthquakes include any "shaking" events.  

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## 1 answers

### Answer by username_7 on 2016-09-22. Score: 8 | Accepted answer

As pointed out in the comments, some do prefer to use different terms for [quakes](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quake_%28natural_phenomenon%29) on other bodies, and you can see [here](https://scholar.google.com/scholar?hl=en&q=marsquake&btnG=&as_sdt=1%2C44&as_sdtp=) that "marsquake" does have scholarly usage. That said, there is also scholarly usage for ["earthquake"](https://scholar.google.com/scholar?q=%22earthquake+on+mars%22&btnG=&hl=en&as_sdt=0%2C44) in this context. If you think about it, this makes sense given that one definition of "earth" is ["the substance of the land surface"](https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/earth), i.e. the ground. This definition of "earth" is agnostic to which terrestrial planet the land surface is on.


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