On August 18 2009 a 6.3 magnitude earthquake was detected south of the Fiji Islands. On August 23 2009 a 5.2 magnitude earthquake was detected in the same area. How many times more intense was the August 18th earthquake than the August 23rd earthquake? (Rounded to the nearest hundredth)
A) 1.10
B) 0.08
C) 12.59
D) 4.16
E) 16.28

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The intensity of an earthquake is measured on a logarithmic scale, so each whole number increase on the Richter scale represents a tenfold increase in measured amplitude. To find out how many times more intense one earthquake is compared to another, you can use the formula 10^(M1-M2), where M1 and M2 are the magnitudes of the two earthquakes. Therefore, for the earthquakes with magnitudes of 6.3 and 5.2, the calculation is 10^(6.3-5.2) = 10^1.1 ≈ 12.59.