Glossary of earthquake terms
Map showing intensity for the New Madrid earthquake. (Image
courtesy of the Central U.S. Earthquake Consortium)
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Intensity
The intensity is
a number
(written as a Roman numeral) describing the severity of an earthquake
in terms of its effects on the earth's surface and on humans and
their structures. Several scales exist, but the ones most commonly
used in the United States are the Modified Mercalli scale and
the Rossi-Forel scale. There are many intensities for an earthquake,
depending on where you are, unlike the magnitude, which is one
number for each earthquake.
See also Earthquake
ABC's & FAQ discussion.
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