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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]
Much of an earthquake's total energy as measured by M w is dissipated as friction (resulting in heating of the crust). [52] An earthquake's potential to cause strong ground shaking depends on the comparatively small fraction of energy radiated as seismic waves, and is better measured on the energy magnitude scale, M e. [53]
This meant that giant earthquakes such as the 1960 Chilean earthquake (M 9.5) were only assigned an M s 8.2. Caltech seismologist Hiroo Kanamori [ 47 ] recognized this deficiency and took the simple but important step of defining a magnitude based on estimates of radiated energy, M w , where the "w" stood for work (energy):
The series of quakes might be the longest period of earthquake activity in the state’s history, officials said last week. But officials have said they don’t believe the spate of minor ...
1979 Imperial Valley earthquake – magnitude 6.4 earthquake with an epicenter less than 1 km inside Mexico – significant damage and injuries on both sides of the border (60 in the US) 2010 Baja California earthquake (Mexico near S California) – magnitude 7.2 earthquake, 4 fatalities and 100 injuries, none in the United States
The series of quakes might be the longest period of earthquake activity in the state’s history, officials said. But they don’t believe the spate of minor earthquakes is an indicator that a ...
The 4.9-magnitude earthquake struck 17 kilometers (10.56 miles) northeast of Hermleigh, Texas, at a depth of 7.7 km, around 10:38 p.m., leading citizens to report tremors from all over West Texas.
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 ...