PANGANGAN NATIONAL HIGH SCHOOL

Lomboy, Calape, Bohol

ACTIVITY SHEET NO. 1

Name: Score:
Year and Section: Date:
Subject: SCIENCE Type of Activity: Activity/Exercises
Activity Title: Find the Epicenter
Learning Target: Locate the epicenter of an earthquake using the triangulation method.
References: Title: Science 10 Learner’s Materials
Page Numbers: 8 – 10

Procedure:
1. Study the data showing the difference in the arrival time of P-wave and S-wave on three
seismic recording stations.

Time difference in Distance of Computed

the arrival time of epicenter from distance on the
Recording Station
P-wave and S-wave the station map
(seconds) (km) (cm)
Batangas 44.8
Puerto Princesa 32
Davao 38.4

2. Compute the distance of the epicenter from each of the stations using this formula:

d= Td x 100 km
8 seconds

Where:
d = distance (km)
Td = time difference in the arrival time of P-wave and S-wave (seconds).

This formula is suited because 8 seconds is the interval between the times of arrival of the P-wave
and S-wave at a distance of 100 km.
3. Choose one of the recording stations and measure the computed distance on the map scale
(the scale of the map in Figure 3 is 1.5 cm: 200 km). Set your compass for that computed
distance.
4. Center your compass on the station you have chosen. Draw a circle.
5. Repeat steps 3 and 4 for the rest of the stations. You should get three circles that intersect or
nearly intersect at a point. This intersection is the epicenter.
In the previous activity, the hypothetical earthquake happened locally, that is why we use the
formula stated in the procedure. But, if the earthquake took place at a far greater distance,
seismologists use the distance-time graph similar to the figure below in determining the location
of the epicenter.
Exercises:

Q1. Where is the epicenter of this hypothetical earthquake?

Q2. What difficulty will you encounter if you only have data from two recording stations?
Q3. What is the distance of the epicenter from the seismic station?
Q4. What do you think is the importance of determining the epicenter of an earthquake?