Mercalli scale

Mer·cal·li scale  (mr-käl, mr-)

n.

A scale of earthquake intensity based on observed effects and ranging from I (detectable only with instruments) to XII (causing almost total destruction).

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[After Giuseppi Mercalli (1850-1914), Italian seismologist.]

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Mercalli scale  (mr-käl, mr-)

A scale of earthquake intensity based on observed effects and ranging from I (detectable only with instruments) to XII (causing almost total destruction). It is named after the Italian seismologist Giuseppe Mercalli.

Thesaurus

Noun

1.

Mercalli scale - a scale formerly used to describe the magnitude of an earthquake; an earthquake detected only by seismographs is a I and an earthquake that destroys all buildings is a XII geology - a science that deals with the history of the earth as recorded in rocks graduated table, ordered series, scale, scale of measurement - an ordered reference standard; "judging on a scale of 1 to 10"