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Geology 14 Earthquake

The document discusses the causes of earthquakes, including surface, volcanic, and tectonic factors, and explains the concepts of earthquake magnitude and energy. It details the Richter and moment magnitude scales, their calculations, and how they relate to the potential damage of earthquakes. Additionally, it covers the determination of earthquake depth and epicenter using seismic data.

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7 views20 pages

Geology 14 Earthquake

The document discusses the causes of earthquakes, including surface, volcanic, and tectonic factors, and explains the concepts of earthquake magnitude and energy. It details the Richter and moment magnitude scales, their calculations, and how they relate to the potential damage of earthquakes. Additionally, it covers the determination of earthquake depth and epicenter using seismic data.

Uploaded by

mdabdurraihan6
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Engineering Geology and Geomorphology

 Surface cause
 Volcanic cause
 Tectonic cause
A high land slide or rock fall may hit the
ground with great impact and produce a
tremors surrounding site.
 Duringvolcanic eruption hot molten lava
comes out with large amount of gases and
vapors. The movement of gases and magma
causes of high pressure.
 The temperature and pressure increase with
depth within the earth
 Due to readjustment the body of earth stored
huge amount of strain energy.
 The energy release by rupturing along the
specified region.
 In 1935 that Charles F. Richter, a seismologist at the
California Institute of Technology, introduced the
concept of earthquake magnitude.
 The Richter magnitude of an earthquake is determined
from the logarithm of the amplitude of waves recorded
by seismographs. Adjustments are included for the
variation in the distance between the various
seismographs and the epicenter of the earthquakes.
The moment magnitude scale is a more accurate
measure of the earthquake size.
Magnitude
 Richter's original magnitude scale (ML) was extended to observations of
earthquakes of any distance and of focal depths ranging between 0 and 700
km. Because earthquakes excite both body waves, which travel into and
through the Earth, and surface waves, which are constrained to follow the
natural wave guide of the Earth's uppermost layers, two magnitude scales
evolved - the mb and MS scales.
 The standard body-wave magnitude formula is
mb = log10(A/T) + Q(D,h) ,
 where A is the amplitude of ground motion (in microns); T is the
corresponding period (in seconds); and Q(D,h) is a correction factor that is
a function of distance, D (degrees), between epicenter and station and focal
depth, h(in kilometers), of the earthquake. The standard surface-wave
formula is
MS = log10 (A/T) + 1.66 log10 (D) + 3.30 .

 Thereare many variations of these formulas that take into account effects
of specific geographic regions, so that the final computed magnitude is
reasonably consistent with Richter's original definition of ML
Energy, E
 The amount of energy radiated by an earthquake is a measure of
the potential for damage to man-made structures. Theoretically,
its computation requires summing the energy flux over a broad
suite of frequencies generated by an earthquake as it ruptures a
fault. Because of instrumental limitations, most estimates of
energy have historically relied on the empirical relationship
developed by Beno Gutenberg and Charles Richter:
 log10E = 11.8 + 1.5MS

 where energy, E, is expressed in ergs. The drawback of this method


is that MS is computed from an bandwidth between approximately
18 to 22 s. It is now known that the energy radiated by an
earthquake is concentrated over a different bandwidth and at
higher frequencies. With the worldwide deployment of modern
digitally recording seismograph with broad bandwidth response,
computerized methods are now able to make accurate and explicit
estimates of energy on a routine basis for all major earthquakes.
A magnitude based on energy radiated by an earthquake, Me,
can now be defined,
 Me = 2/3 log10E - 2.9.
 For every increase in magnitude by 1 unit, the associated
seismic energy increases by about 32 times.
 Although Mw and Me are both magnitudes, they describe
different physical properites of the earthquake. Mw,
computed from low-frequency seismic data, is a measure
of the area ruptured by an earthquake. Me, computed from
high frequency seismic data, is a measure of seismic
potential for damage. Consequently, Mw and Me often do
not have the same numerical value.
Intensity
 The increase in the degree of surface shaking
(intensity) for each unit increase of magnitude of a
shallow crustal earthquake is unknown. Intensity is
based on an earthquake's local accelerations and how
long these persist. Intensity and magnitude thus both
depend on many variables that include exactly how
rock breaks and how energy travels from an
earthquake to a receiver. These factors make it difficult
for engineers and others who use earthquake intensity
and magnitude data to evaluate the error bounds that
may exist for their particular applications.
Determining the Depth of an Earthquake
• Earthquakes can occur anywhere between the
Earth's surface and about 700 kilometers below the
surface. For scientific purposes, this earthquake depth
range of 0 - 700 km is divided into three zones: shallow,
intermediate, and deep.
• The depth of the earthquake can be determined from
published travel-time curves or depth tables.
 The Richter Scale: It used a formula based on
amplitude of the largest wave recorded on a specific
type of seismometer and the distance between the
earthquake and the seismometer.
 Moment magnitude scale: Abbreviated MW, is
preferred because it works over a wider range of
earthquake sizes and is applicable globally. The
moment magnitude scale is based on the total
moment release of the earthquake.
Magnitudes are based on a logarithmic scale (base 10).
What this means is that for each whole number you go
up on the magnitude scale, the amplitude of the ground
motion recorded by a seismograph goes uzp ten times.
Using this scale, a magnitude 5 earthquake would
result in ten times the level of ground shaking as a
magnitude 4 earthquake (and 32 times as much energy
would be released).
 The Mercalli Scale
Epicenter of an earthquake
The center of the circle will be the location of your
seismograph. The epicenter of the earthquake is
somewhere on the edge of that circle.
Step 1: Determine the distance of the earthquake for
each of the available station.
Step 2: Around each seismic station construct a circle.
The radius of the circle is the distance between the
earthquake and that station. The point where all of the
circles overlap is the approximate epicenter of the
earthquake.
 https://earthquake.usgs.gov/learn/topics/me
asure.php
 http://www.geo.mtu.edu/UPSeis/locating.ht
ml
Assignment:08
Q.1: How the epicenter of an earthquake can be determined? Describe.
Q.2: What is the difference between the energy and magnitude of an
earthquake?
Q.3: What are the causes of an earthquake? Describe.
Q.4: Describe “The Richter Scale”.

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