Online Geography Resources Showcase

There are two ways to measure earthquakes:

1. The Richter Scale: a single number that measures the amount of energy released by an earthquake.
2. The Modified Mercalli Scale: a range of figures (I to XII) that reflect the damage caused by the earthquake in different areas.

Richter Scale

Is there a direct link between the energy released by an earthquakes (it's value on the Richter Scale) and the number of people killed?

1. Download this Excel document.
2. Use this website to complete the table: USGS Earthquake Hazard Program
3. Click on the Chart1 tab at the bottom of the Excel document to see the chart that the data you have inputted has plotted.
4. Is there a link between Richter Scale and the number of deaths or are other factors more important?

Modified Mercalli Scale - detailed explanation

1. Download this worksheet.
2. Use the descriptions on this website Wikipedia.org - Mercalli_Intensity_Scale to produce a series of cartoons that show each of the categories of the Modified Mercalli Scale.