Skip to content
Intensity Lab

One Earthquake. One Magnitude. Countless Intensities.

Magnitude describes the amount of energy released by an earthquake. Seismic intensities describe the level and type of shaking at a particular location. The USGS Modified Mercalli Intensity (MMI) scale1 describes seismic intensity shaking levels from one (I) to ten (X). Explore intensity three ways below.

  1. I
  2. II
  3. III
  4. IV
  5. V
  6. VI
  7. VII
  8. VIII
  9. IX
  10. X

One (I) Not feltTen (X) Extreme

Shaking videos from earthquakes worldwide

Real footage of real earthquakes. Find a quake on the globe, watch what it did, and rate the intensity yourself. 44 rated clips from 12 earthquakes Explore the globe → Simulated peak ground velocity of the 1994 Northridge earthquake, with seismograms at six stations

Seismic waves across the region

Simulations of an earthquake's waves crossing the region, second by second, and the peak ground velocity they leave behind. Newest: M5.4, 5km S of Chino Hills, CA Watch the waves →

After a significant earthquake in our region

Measured shaking, simulated shaking where no sensor recorded it, and animations of what that shaking does to a room. Latest: M4.1, 19 km SE of Joseph, Oregon See what we produce →

Site last deployed: November 11, 2026.