Mercalli Scale

Real World Example

Imagine you're trying to figure out how severe a car accident was just by looking at the damage done to the car. The Mercalli scale works similarly by assessing the intensity of an earthquake based on the visible damage it causes to buildings and the ground. Just like a more severe car accident leaves behind more extensive damage and is easier to assess, a higher intensity earthquake on the Mercalli scale results in more noticeable destruction, allowing us to gauge how powerful the seismic event was.