How many times stronger is an earthquake

The quake that shook central Mexico this week was a 7. Basically, magnitude is a number representing the total energy released in an earthquake, said seismologist Lucy Jones. The energy released is determined by how much rock moves and how far it moves. This explains why an 8 could be so much more terrifying than a 6.

For each whole-number increase in magnitude, the seismic energy released increases by about 32 times. That means a magnitude 7 earthquake produces 32 times more energy — or is 32 times stronger — than a magnitude 6. A magnitude 8 releases 1, times more energy than a magnitude 6, but it releases that energy over a larger area and for a longer time, Jones said. Originally, the definition of magnitude related to seismograms, in which machines used an ink stylus to record rapid motions on a rolling drum of paper that would measure shaking.

Magnitude was about how big the waves were on a seismogram at a particular distance from the epicenter. On the so-called Richter scale, a magnitude 8 on a seismogram was 10 times bigger than a magnitude 7. But the Richter scale was eventually scrapped in favor of what is known as the moment magnitude scale.

The moment magnitude scale measures the movement of rock along the fault, and accurately measures larger earthquakes, which can last for minutes and affect a much larger area; the Richter scale did not accurately record such quakes, Jones said.

The U. Geological Survey has a calculator that can help you make these calculations. So, for instance, a magnitude 8. Magnitude is important, but a key factor is where a quake strikes. The ones most people care about strike under or near heavily populated areas.

Generally, earthquakes of magnitude 6 and above are the ones for concern. When nearby, they can cause shaking intensities that can begin to break chimneys and cause considerable damage to the most seismically vulnerable structures, such as non-retrofitted brick buildings.

Earthquakes of magnitude 7 and above can overturn heavy furniture and inflict considerable damage in ordinary buildings. That earthquake was a magnitude 6. But the shaking intensity varied by where you were when it hit. Yet the downtown Los Angeles region got far less intense shaking from the same earthquake — intensity 6 or 7, where damage is negligible in buildings of good design and construction. Vast swaths of Southern California would feel intensity 10 shaking, or extreme shaking — an earthquake that no one alive today has experienced in this region.

Intensity Extreme — Some well-built wooden structures destroyed; most masonry and frame structures destroyed with foundations. Rails bent. Intensity 9: Violent — Damage considerable in specially designed structures; well-designed frame structures thrown out of plumb. Damage great in substantial buildings, with partial collapse.

Buildings shifted off foundations. Intensity 8: Severe — Damage slight in specially designed structures; considerable damage in ordinary substantial buildings with partial collapse. Damage great in poorly built structures.

Fall of chimneys, factory stacks, columns, monuments, walls. Heavy furniture overturned. Reset your password if you forgot it. Algebra: Logarithm Section. Solvers Solvers. Lessons Lessons. Answers archive Answers. Why is a 7. Note that one earthquake is ten time more powerful than the other. Chers, Stan H. You can put this solution on YOUR website! Lets talk about the Richter Scale.

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