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The energy that is released by an earthquake is formed due to the accumulation of elastic strain energy in the crust around a fault due to deformation (a bit like the energy stored in a compressed spring).

As the stress and resultant strain accumulates, it ultimately exceeds the shear strength of the rock mass in the fault zone or the shear strength of the fault itself and causes a brittle failure or rupture to occur. This causes sudden movement, fracturing of the rock mass and a sudden release of the accumulated elastic strain energy in the form of seismic waves, heat and sound.

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