Measuring An Earthquake

Question 1

What 2 different ways are there of measuring earthquakes?

Answer 1

1. Look at how much movement (magnitude) there was.
2. Look at the amount of damage (intensity) caused.

Question 2

How do you measure the magnitude of a earthquake?

Answer 2

You can use a seismograph or the Richter scale.

Question 3

What are seismic waves?

Answer 3

They are the movement of the earth after an earthquake has occurred.

Question 4

What are the 4 different types of seismic waves?

Answer 4

1. P-waves or primary waves
2. S-waves or secondary waves
3. R-waves or Rayleigh waves
4. L-waves or love waves

Question 5

What category do P-waves and S-waves fall under and why?

Answer 5

They fall under Body waves. This is because the move the whole of the rock mass.

Question 6

What category do R-waves and L-waves fall under and why?

Answer 6

They fall under Surface waves. This is because they move at or just below the surface and travel slow.

Question 7

What is the Richter scale?

Answer 7

It is a type of scale that for every 1 point, the strength is 10 times more, and it measures the magnitude of an earthquake.

Question 8

What is the Mercalli scale?

Answer 8

It is a type of scale that describes the damage seen after an earth has occurred.