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K (from the Russian word класс, 'class', in the sense of a category [57]) is a measure of earthquake magnitude in the energy class or K-class system, developed in 1955 by Soviet seismologists in the remote Garm region of Central Asia; in revised form it is still used for local and regional quakes in many states formerly aligned with the ...
Megathrust earthquakes occur at convergent plate boundaries, where one tectonic plate is forced underneath another. The earthquakes are caused by slip along the thrust fault that forms the contact between the two plates. These interplate earthquakes are the planet's most powerful, with moment magnitudes (M w) that can exceed 9.0.
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]
In 2011, more than 18,000 people lost their lives amid a magnitude-9.0 earthquake and tsunami in Tohoku, Japan, The New Yorker noted. That catastrophe wound up costing approximately $220 billion.
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 temblor, which measured 4.8 on the Richter scale, was considered a shallow earthquake by the U.S. Geological Survey, meaning that it occurred at a depth of zero to 70 kilometers below ground.
In its most general sense, the word earthquake is used to describe any seismic event that generates seismic waves. Earthquakes can occur naturally or be induced by human activities, such as mining, fracking, and nuclear tests. The initial point of rupture is called the hypocenter or focus, while the ground level directly above it is the epicenter.
By RYAN GORMAN A massive earthquake that struck the Bay Area on October 17, 1989 forever changed the region, and potentially altered the course of baseball history. The 6.9-magnitude Loma Prieta ...