Question

The separation of P-waves and S-waves on a seismogram recorded 4500 km from the epicenter of an earthquake is six minutes. On another seismogram, that separation is seven minutes. Is the second station closer to or more distant from the epicenter?Explain.

Answer 1

The second station is closer to the epicenter of the earthquake.

Step-by-step explanation:

The time difference between the separation of P-waves and S-waves in seismograms can be used to determine the distance to the epicenter of an earthquake. P-waves travel faster than S-waves, so the arrival time of P-waves is always earlier than S-waves. In the first seismogram, the separation is six minutes, indicating that the second seismogram is located 4500 km away from the epicenter. In the second seismogram, the separation is seven minutes, which means it took longer for the S-waves to arrive than in the first seismogram. Therefore, the second station is closer to the epicenter of the earthquake than the first station.

Answer 2

It is further away

Step-by-step explanation:

The first thing is to calculate the speed at which it moves:

4,500 km / 6 minutes = 750 km / min

which means that per minute the distance is 750 km away from the epicenter.

Now, they tell us that the other case took 8 minutes, knowing the speed, we calculated the distance, like this:

750 km / min * 7 min = 5250 km

Which means that it is further away since it is a value greater than 4500.