National Richter Scale Day
Learn more about the inventor of the Richter scale on #NationalRichterScaleDay
26 April is National Richter Scale Day, which is celebrated annually in honour of the birth of the instrument’s inventor, Charles F Richter (26 April 1900 – 30 September 1985).
Richter was an American seismologist and physicist. He gained his fame as the inventor of the Richter magnitude scale, which quantified the size of earthquakes. He first used the scale in 1935, while working with Beno Gutenberg at the California Institute of Technology.
After the Richter scale was published in 1935, it immediately became the standard measure of earthquake intensity. Other scales have been invented since 1935, but none as famous or as popular as the Richter scale. Depending on what data is available, different scales are used to measure the earthquake’s intensity.
The United States Geological Service’s records show that the biggest earthquake since 1900 occurred in May 1960 in Chile. It measured 9.5 on the Richter scale and is known as the Great Chilean Earthquake.
To see details of the ten largest earthquakes, read here.
Use #NationalRichterScaleDay to post on social media.
Do you perhaps have more information pertaining to this story? Email us at roodepoortrecord@caxton.co.za (remember to include your contact details) or phone us on 011 955 1130.
For free daily local news on the West Rand, also visit our sister newspaper websites
Remember to visit our Facebook, Twitter and Instagram pages to let your voice be heard!
