POW 7 - Earthquakes, Maddie Sturm

Earthquakes are typically described using the logarithmic Richter scale. This means that
instead of describing intensity, the Richter scale describes the magnitude of an earthquake.
This is done using the formula R=log( I) where R is the Richter magnitude and I is the
actual intensity of the quake in

w
2 . (yes, there are units of intensity)
m

Pre-lab questions:
A. If an earthquake has an intensity of

782,300

w
2 , what is its magnitude on the
m

Richter Scale?
a. R = log 782,300
R = 5.89
magnitude = 5.89
B. Colorados largest earthquake in the last hundred years was a 5.3. What was
the intensity?
a. 5.3 = log (I)
b. 105.3 = (I)
c. I = 199,526
d. Intensity = 199,526.
In 2010, a 7.0 quake hit Haiti and the death toll is estimated around 150,000 people.
Seismologists anticipate an earthquake off the coast of Oregon or Washington in the next 50
years that could be up to 9.2.
1) How much more intense would this quake be than the earthquake in Haiti?
Present your answer as a factor, for example three times more intense! Oh my!
2) If the earthquake is only half as intense as predicted, what will it be on the
Richter scale?

Stage 1 - Understanding the problem

Known Values:
7.0 of the Haiti Earthquake
9.2 of the Washington/Oregon Earthquake
Pre-lab answers:
A. Magnitude = 5.89
B. Intensity = 199,526.
Variables:
A. Magnitude
B. Intensity

Final goal:

How intense will the Washington/Oregon Earthquake will be using the Richter Scale
{ R=log ( I ) .}?

Stage 2 - Developing a plan

A helpful tool will be:
My plan is to use the Richter scale

R=log( I ) to solve the problem given.

Rough prediction:
I feel like it would be twice as bad as the Haiti Earthquake.

Stage 3 - Solving the problem

Step

Explanation

R = log (I)

I set up the Richter scale so I could plug in

the numbers easily. This is for the 9.2
earthquake

9.2 = log (I)

I know the magnitude of the earthquake is

9.2, so I plugged it in for R

109.2 = (I)

I wanted to make the logarithmic equation a

exponential equation. So I moved 10 over to
the other side of the equation so 10 is at the
power of 9.2.

I = 1584893192.46

R = log (I)

7.0= log (I)

107.0 = (I)

10000000

After solving for 109.2 on a calculator I got

1584893192.46 for the intensity.

I followed the same steps above this is for the

7.0 earthquake.

log(9.2)/log(7.0)= 1.14x times stronger

Final Step: This is how I got how much

stronger the Oregon/Washington earthquake
will be.

Stage 4 - Answer the problem

Solution(s):
Oregon/Washington earthquake will be 1.14x times stronger than the one in Haiti. It has the
Magnitude of 9.2 and the Intensity of 1584893192.46.
Reflection:
I am super interested in earthquakes and I found this P.O.W very insightful and interesting, I
would totally do a problem similar to this one again.