Magnitude
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A numerical expression of the amount of energy released by an earthquake, determined by measuring earthquake waves on standardized recording instruments (seismographs). The number scale for magnitudes is logarithmic rather than arithmetic; therefore, deflections on a seismograph for a magnitude 5 earthquake, for example, are 10 times greater than those for a magnitude 4 earthquake, 100 times greater than for a magnitude 3 earthquake, and so on. (Foxworthy and Hill, 1982) [1]