What does an earthquake look like – to a seismologist?
In order to study earthquakes, scientists deploy seismometers to measure ground motion. Seismograms are recordings of ground motion as a function of time and are the basic data which seismologists use to study the waves generated by earthquakes. These data are used to study the earthquakes themselves and to learn more about the structure of the Earth. We have gathered several examples of earthquake recordings to illustrate the wide variety of motion. These data are derived from the Berkeley Digital Seismic Network, an array of broadband, high-dynamic range instruments in northern and central California. This network is operated by the UC Berkeley Seismological Laboratory for earthquake monitoring and research. Seismologists generally describe earthquakes as local, regional, or teleseismic. These terms refer to distance from the earthquake to the recording instrument. For example, when the Berkeley Seismographic Station refers to a local earthquake, we mean one which has occurred within
