Question

If one earthquake has magnitude 6.5 on the Richter scale, what is the magnitude of another quake that is 35 times as intense?

Answer 1

The magnitude of the earthquake that is 35 times as intense as a magnitude 6.5 earthquake on the Richter scale would be approximately 7.04.

Step-by-step explanation:

The Richter scale is used to quantify the energy produced by an earthquake. The numbers on the Richter scale are a type of logarithmic scale that represent the amplitude and energy of the earthquake. An earthquake with a magnitude of 6.5 on the Richter scale is 10 times more intense than one with a magnitude of 5.5. Therefore, if one earthquake has a magnitude of 6.5 and another earthquake is 35 times as intense, we can calculate its magnitude as follows:

1. Find the relative intensity of the second earthquake compared to the first by dividing the second earthquake's intensity by the first earthquake's intensity: 35 / 10 = 3.5
2. Find the logarithm of the relative intensity: log(3.5) = 0.5441
3. Add the logarithm to the magnitude of the first earthquake: 6.5 + 0.5441 = 7.0441