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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]
As the energy of a wave is proportional to A 1.5, where A denotes the amplitude, each unit of magnitude represents a 10 1.5 ≈32-fold increase in the seismic energy (strength) of an earthquake. [13] Second, Richter arbitrarily defined the zero point of the scale to be where an earthquake at a distance of 100 km makes a maximum horizontal ...
A pie chart comparing the seismic moment release of the three largest earthquakes for the hundred-year period from 1906 to 2005 with that for all earthquakes of magnitudes <6, 6 to 7, 7 to 8, and >8 for the same period. The 2011 Japan quake would be roughly similar to Sumatra. Earthquakes of magnitude 8.0 and greater from 1900 to 2018.
The 1960 Valdivia earthquake and tsunami (Spanish: Terremoto de Valdivia) or the Great Chilean earthquake (Gran terremoto de Chile) on 22 May 1960 was the most powerful earthquake ever recorded. Most studies have placed it at 9.4–9.6 on the moment magnitude scale , [ 1 ] while some studies have placed the magnitude lower than 9.4.
In 1902, Italian seismologist Giuseppe Mercalli, created the Mercalli Scale, a new 12-grade scale. Significant improvements were achieved, mainly by Charles Francis Richter during the 1950s, when (1) a correlation was found between seismic intensity and the Peak ground acceleration (PGA; see the equation that Richter found for California).
The 1968 Illinois earthquake (a New Madrid event) [4] was the largest recorded earthquake in the U.S. Midwestern state of Illinois. Striking at 11:02 a.m. on November 9, it measured 5.3 on the Richter scale . [ 5 ]
Measuring M w 6.7, it was the largest earthquake recorded in the Los Angeles area since the 1971 San Fernando earthquake (M w 6.7). However, unlike the Northridge earthquake, the San Fernando shock occurred on a north–northeast dipping thrust fault beneath the San Gabriel Mountains.
The Dogger Bank earthquake of 1931 is the strongest earthquake recorded in the United Kingdom since measurements began. It had a magnitude of 6.1 on the Richter scale, and it caused a shaking intensity of VI (Strong) to VII (Very strong) on the Mercalli intensity scale.