Consider the following statements relating to Richter scale: 1. It was devised in 1935 by Charles F. Richter 2. It describes the antity of energy released by a single earthake 3. Richter Scale has no upper limit Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

The Richter scale, also known as the local magnitude scale (ML), was developed in 1935 by Charles F. Richter at the California Institute of Technology [4]. It is a logarithmic scale designed to quantify the magnitude of an earthquake, which is a measure of the amount of seismic energy released during the event [3]. While the scale is often associated with values between 0 and 10 in common parlance, it is mathematically open-ended and has no theoretical upper limit [2]. Each whole number increase on the scale represents a tenfold increase in the measured amplitude of seismic waves and approximately a 31.6 to 32 times increase in the total energy released [3]. Although modern seismologists now prefer the Moment Magnitude Scale (Mw) for larger global earthquakes, the fundamental principles of the Richter scale regarding energy and its open-ended nature remain scientifically accurate [4].

Sources

1. [2] Environment and Ecology, Majid Hussain (Access publishing 3rd ed.) > Chapter 8: Natural Hazards and Disaster Management > Magnitude of Earthquake > p. 16
2. [4] https://www.usgs.gov/programs/earthquake-hazards/earthquake-magnitude-energy-release-and-shaking-intensity
3. [1] Physical Geography by PMF IAS, Manjunath Thamminidi, PMF IAS (1st ed.) > Chapter 14: Earthquakes > 14.5. Richter Magnitude Scale > p. 182
4. [3] FUNDAMENTALS OF PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY, Geography Class XI (NCERT 2025 ed.) > Chapter 3: Interior of the Earth > Measuring Earthquakes > p. 21