The municipality of Carnaubais, in Rio Grande do Norte, has been the scene of a sequence of dirt tremors in the last two days. Between last Thursday (24) and Friday (25), the Seismological Laboratory of the Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte (Labsis/UFRN) recorded more than 20 land tremors in the region, with the event of greatest magnitude reaching 3.0 on the Richter scale.
According to LABSIS/UFRN, which monitors seismic activity throughout the Northeast, tremors were classified as “low intensity”, possibly resulting from the reactivation of pre -existing tectonic failures.
Despite the significant amount of events, there were no reports of residents of carnaubal who have felt the shaking. The chronology of the tremors sequence was detailed by Labsis/UFRN:
Thursday, April 24:
- Night: The most magnitude tremor of the sequence, 3.0 mr, occurred at 7:28 pm. In all, about 23 seismic events were recorded;
- Dawn: approximately 12 earthquakes were detected, with the most significant reaching a preliminary magnitude of 2.0 mr at 03h20.
Friday, April 25:
- Morning: A new earthquake, with a preliminary magnitude of 1.6 mr, was recorded at 4:58 am.
Labsis/UFRN said it continues to monitor seismic activity in Rio Grande do Norte and throughout the Northeast.
Understand the Richter scale
Scientists use the “scale of magnitude of the moment” to categorize the strength and size of earthquakes in a more accurate way than the “Richter scale”, used a long time ago, says US geological service.
This scale of magnitude of the moment is based on the “seismic moment” of the earthquake, which explains how the earth’s crust moves in an earthquake, the size of the area along the crust fissure and the force needed to overcome friction in that place, along with the seismic waves that change creates.
Measuring the intensity of an earthquake
The intensity of an earthquake is measured using the “modified Mercalli scale” of intensity, or MMI.
It measures the force of an earthquake shaking in specific places around its epicenter – the point on the earth’s surface directly above the earthquake’s underground origin.
The MMI scale uses Roman numerals to determine the intensity of an earthquake based on structural damage assessments and observer reports.
It is important to consider intensity, since the terrain, depth, location and many other factors play a significant role in the devastation that an earthquake can cause.
*Under supervision
This content was originally published in City records more than 20 tremors in two days in Rio Grande do Norte on the CNN Brazil website.
Source: CNN Brasil
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