In 1935, American seismologist Charles Richter developed a scale that measures the magnitude of seismic waves. Called the Richter scale, it rates earth tremors on a scale from 1 to 9, with 9 being the most powerful and each number representing an increase of ten times the energy over the previous number.
According to this scale, any quake that is higher than 4.5 can cause damage to stone buildings; quakes rated a magnitude of 7 and above are considered very severe. The largest earthquake ever recorded - with a Richter magnitude of 9.5 - occurred off the coast of Chile in 1960. Here's a list of the 10 most devastating earthquakes of all time.
(thanks Ashley)
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