By Jon Fledderjohann Santa Monica
(Re: “What’s shaking in Santa Monica,” Aug. 28) It is a common misconception that a one-unit increase in the Richter scale corresponds to a tenfold increase in the amount of energy released in an earthquake. More accurately, to take an example, approximately 31.6 times as much energy is released in a 7.0 earthquake as is in a 6.0 earthquake. To state it accurately, a one-unit increase in the Richter scale corresponds to about a 31.6-unit increase in earthquake energy.
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on August 30, 2007. Read the original PDF.