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An earthquake's seismic moment can be estimated in various ways, which are the bases of the M wb, M wr, M wc, M ww, M wp, M i, and M wpd scales, all subtypes of the generic M w scale. See Moment magnitude scale § Subtypes for details. Seismic moment is considered the most objective measure of an earthquake's "size" in regard of total energy. [50]
Seismic intensity scales categorize the intensity or severity of ground shaking (quaking) at a given location, such as resulting from an earthquake. They are distinguished from seismic magnitude scales , which measure the magnitude or overall strength of an earthquake, which may, or perhaps may not, cause perceptible shaking.
The Richter scale [1] (/ ˈ r ɪ k t ər /), also called the Richter magnitude scale, Richter's magnitude scale, and the Gutenberg–Richter scale, [2] is a measure of the strength of earthquakes, developed by Charles Richter in collaboration with Beno Gutenberg, and presented in Richter's landmark 1935 paper, where he called it the "magnitude scale". [3]
Officially it's called the moment magnitude scale. It's a logarithmic scale, meaning each number is 10 times as strong as the one before it. So a 5.0 earthquake is ten times stronger than a 4.0 ...
The Modified Mercalli intensity scale (MM, MMI, or MCS) measures the effects of an earthquake at a given location. This is in contrast with the seismic magnitude usually reported for an earthquake. Magnitude scales measure the inherent force or strength of an earthquake – an event occurring at greater or lesser depth. (The "M w" scale is ...
Before 1995, an earthquake with a maximum seismic intensity of 6 was certainly a "major earthquake" in terms of magnitude. However, since 1996, even very shallow minor earthquakes are more likely to report seismic intensities of 5 or 6, so it is not appropriate to treat "earthquakes with a maximum seismic intensity of 6" on par with those ...
Unlike the Richter and moment magnitude scales, it is not a measure of the total energy (magnitude, or size) of an earthquake, but rather of how much the earth shakes at a given geographic point. The Mercalli intensity scale uses personal reports and observations to measure earthquake intensity but PGA is measured by instruments, such as ...
The moment magnitude scale (MMS; denoted explicitly with M w or Mwg, and generally implied with use of a single M for magnitude [1]) is a measure of an earthquake's magnitude ("size" or strength) based on its seismic moment. M w was defined in a 1979 paper by Thomas C. Hanks and Hiroo Kanamori.