GEOLOGY

Detailed explanation-1: -The Richter scale is used to rate the magnitude of an earthquake, that is the amount of energy released during an earthquake.

Detailed explanation-2: -The Richter Scale It used a formula based on the amplitude of the largest wave recorded on a specific type of seismometer and the distance between the earthquake and the seismometer.

Detailed explanation-3: -The Richter scale measures the largest wiggle (amplitude) on the recording, but other magnitude scales measure different parts of the earthquake. The USGS currently reports earthquake magnitudes using the Moment Magnitude scale, though many other magnitudes are calculated for research and comparison purposes.

Detailed explanation-4: -Because of the limitations of all three magnitude scales (ML, Mb, and Ms), a new more uniformly applicable extension of the magnitude scale, known as moment magnitude, or Mw, was developed. In particular, for very large earthquakes, moment magnitude gives the most reliable estimate of earthquake size.

Detailed explanation-5: -While the Mercalli scale describes the intensity of an earthquake based on its observed effects, the Richter scale describes the earthquake’s magnitude by measuring the seismic waves that cause the earthquake. The two scales have different applications and measurement techniques.