Measuring Earthquakes

Measuring Earthquakes (HM1673)

Location: Fallon, NV 89406 Churchill County
Buy Nevada State flags at Flagstore.com!
Country: United States of America
Buy United States of America flags at Flagstore.com!

N 39° 12.701', W 118° 8.804'

  • 0 likes
  • 0 check ins
  • 0 favorites
  • 462 views
Inscription
Scientists measure the force of an earthquake in several ways. The Richter Scale and the Modified Mercalli Scale are the two methods most often used to gauge an earthquake's strength and magnitude.

The Richter Scale provides an estimate of an earthquake's magnitude through the use of a very precise instrument called a seismograph. It measures and records the seismic waves, or vibrations, created by the sudden release of energy caused when segments of the Earth's crust move. The scale ranges from 1 to 10, but it is logarithmic. This means for example, that a recording of 7 would show that movement of the earth was 10 times greater than a recording of 6. Earthquakes with a Richter value of 6 or more are considered major in magnitude. The 1954 earthquake that exposed the fault in front of you measured 7.3 on the Richter Scale. By comparison, the famous San Francisco earthquake of 1906 had a value of 8.3 on the scale.

The Modified Mercalli Scale expresses how intense an earthquake's effects are in a given location. The scale's values range from "I - Not felt except by a very few, favorably situated", to "XII - Damage total, lines of sight and level disturbed, objects thrown into the air". A value on this scale is assigned only after eyewitness reports and results of field investigations are studied and interpreted. The maximum intensity of the 1954 earthquake was X, the same as the 1964 quake in Alaska. The 1906 San Francisco earthquake measured XI on the scale.
Details
HM NumberHM1673
Tags
Placed ByBureau of Land Management
Marker ConditionNo reports yet
Date Added Tuesday, September 2nd, 2014 at 2:14am PDT -07:00
Pictures
Sorry, but we don't have a picture of this historical marker yet. If you have a picture, please share it with us. It's simple to do. 1) Become a member. 2) Adopt this historical marker listing. 3) Upload the picture.
Locationbig map
UTM (WGS84 Datum)11S E 400997 N 4340894
Decimal Degrees39.21168333, -118.14673333
Degrees and Decimal MinutesN 39° 12.701', W 118° 8.804'
Degrees, Minutes and Seconds39° 12' 42.06" N, 118° 8' 48.24" W
Driving DirectionsGoogle Maps
Area Code(s)775
Closest Postal AddressAt or near 1001-1099 Unnamed Road, Fallon NV 89406, US
Alternative Maps Google Maps, MapQuest, Bing Maps, Yahoo Maps, MSR Maps, OpenCycleMap, MyTopo Maps, OpenStreetMap

Is this marker missing? Are the coordinates wrong? Do you have additional information that you would like to share with us? If so, check in.

Nearby Markersshow on map
Check Ins  check in   |    all

Have you seen this marker? If so, check in and tell us about it.

Comments 0 comments

Maintenance Issues
  1. Is this marker part of a series?
  2. What historical period does the marker represent?
  3. What historical place does the marker represent?
  4. What type of marker is it?
  5. What class is the marker?
  6. What style is the marker?
  7. Does the marker have a number?
  8. What year was the marker erected?
  9. This marker needs at least one picture.
  10. Can this marker be seen from the road?
  11. Is the marker in the median?