The separation of P-waves and S-waves on a seismogram recorded 4500 km from the epicenter of an earthquake is six minutes. On another seismogram that separation is seven minutes. Is the second station closer to or more distant from the epicenter? Explain.
I have no idea , that's why I came on this site obviously .
I guess no answer lol
What do you think? As the S and P waves travel away fom the epicenter, the distance between them increases.
The 2nd station was farther from the epicenter
To determine whether the second station is closer to or more distant from the epicenter, we need to understand the difference in arrival times between P-waves and S-waves.
P-waves (Primary waves) are the fastest seismic waves and arrive at a seismograph station before S-waves (Secondary waves). The time difference between their arrival can be used to assess the distance between the seismograph station and the earthquake epicenter.
In this case, we are given that the separation on the first seismogram (4500 km from the epicenter) is six minutes, and the separation on the second seismogram is seven minutes.
The key fact to consider is that as distance from the earthquake epicenter increases, the difference in arrival times between P-waves and S-waves also increases. This is because the waves must travel a longer distance before reaching the seismograph station.
In the first case, where the separation is six minutes, the seismograph station is farther away from the epicenter. As the difference in arrival times between P-waves and S-waves increases, we can infer that the distance to the epicenter is greater than in the second case.
In the second case, where the separation is seven minutes, the seismograph station is closer to the epicenter. The increase in the separation time indicates that the waves had less distance to travel before reaching the seismograph station.
Therefore, based on the given information, the second station with a separation of seven minutes is closer to the epicenter of the earthquake compared to the first station with a separation of six minutes.