L8 earthquakes

How do we measure earthquakes?

Epicentre and focus video

• Watch it here

• A = • B =

How can we measure earthquakes?

• There are two ways of measuring earthquakes;

1. The Richter Scale 2. The Mercalli Scale

How do we measure earthquakes?

1. Richter Scale

• On the Richter Scale, magnitude is expressed in whole numbers and decimal fractions.

• Although the Richter Scale has no upper limit, the largest known shocks have had magnitudes in the 8.8 to 8.9 range.

• It is a logarithmic scale which means that a size ‘6’ on the Richter Scale is 10 times larger than a size ’5’ and 100 times larger than a size ‘4’.

• Measured using a seismograph or seismogram.

How do we measure earthquakes?

How do we measure earthquakes?

A seismograph - video

2. Mercalli Scale

• Based on the effects of an earthquake.

• The scale goes from 1to 12

How do we measure earthquakes?

Have a go at this past question

Swap answers and peer assess

Earthquake recap: When will an earthquake cause the most

damage?

Powerful earthquake, causes a lot of damage

Weak earthquake,Doesn’t cause much damage

Distance from the epicentre

The state of preparation for an earthquake (country)

Population density

Type of land the area is built on

Time of the day

Time of the year