Body wave magnitude
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Earth Sciences Portal Category • Related topics |
Body wave magnitude (
) is a way of determining the size of an earthquake, using the amplitude of the initial P-wave to calculate the magnitude. The P-wave is a type of body wave that is capable of traveling through the earth at a velocity of around 5 to 8 km/s, and is the first wave from an earthquake to reach a seismometer. Because of this, calculating the body wave magnitude can be the quickest method of determining the size of an earthquake that is of a large distance from the seismometer.
Limitations in the calculation method mean that body wave magnitude saturates at around 6-6.5 , with the figure staying the same even when the moment magnitude may be higher.
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