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These are known as magnitude scales. The most commonly known is the Richter magnitude scale which can be calculated from the amplitude of seismic waves measured by a seismometer. However it was not designed for use with larger earthquakes (greater than magnitude 7.0) or for ones a long way from the seismometer station (greater than around 650 km).

As such the moment magnitude scale was developed which is calculated from the cross sectional area of the slipped fault, the elastic properties of the rock mass around the fault and the size of the fault movement. This is harder to derive than the Richter magnitude but can be used for larger earthquakes.

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