# The Richter Magnitude Scale Is a [[Logarithmic Scale]] used to classify an earthquake based on its released energy. Magnitude 1.0 are micro earthquakes which are generally not even felt, to magnitude 9.0 and greater, which cause vast destruction and building collapse. Due to the logarithmic basis of the scale, each whole number magnitude is about 31.6 times stronger than the previous one, i.e. magnitude 2 is about 31.6 times stronger than magnitude 1, magnitude 3 is 31.6 times stronger than magnitude 2, and so on. In other words, each magnitude increase of 0.2 approximately corresponds to a doubling of released energy. For describing earthquakes in terms of the equivalent energy of TNT, see [[Earthquake Frequency]].