The late Tuesday morning earthquake was felt from Los Angeles to San Diego, even on some parts of Las Vegas. According to preliminary information from the U.S. Geological Survey, the earthquake is estimated at magnitude 5.8 and centered 29 miles east-southeast of downtown Los Angeles near Chino Hills. A 5.8 magnitude quake is considered by the USGS to be “moderate,” which can cause slight damage to buildings and others structures. About 500 can happen globally each year, the survey says. Eyewitnesses have reported that the quake lasted about 5 seconds. So far, no report on damages to properties and lives have been reported.
Earthquake
An earthquake is the result of a sudden release of energy in the Earth’s crust that creates seismic waves. Earthquakes are recorded with a seismometer, also known as a seismograph. The moment magnitude of an earthquake is conventionally reported, or the related and mostly obsolete Richter magnitude, with magnitude 3 or lower earthquakes being mostly imperceptible and magnitude 7 causing serious damage over large areas. Intensity of shaking is measured on the modified Mercalli scale.
At the Earth’s surface, earthquakes manifest themselves by a shaking and sometimes displacement of the ground. When a large earthquake epicenter is located offshore, the seabed sometimes suffers sufficient displacement to cause a tsunami. The shaking in earthquakes can also trigger landslides and occasionally volcanic activity.
Hope that there are no damages to property or loss of lives from this earthquake in LA.
