Answer :
Final answer:
To find the distance to an earthquake's epicenter based on the difference in arrival times of P and S waves, seismologists use a seismic travel-time graph or the velocities of these waves. Without either the specific graph or the velocities for the region of interest, we cannot determine the exact distance to the epicenter in this case.
Explanation:
The question concerns the calculation of the distance to an earthquake's epicenter based on the difference in arrival times of P and S seismic waves. The arrival times are used to create a seismic travel-time graph that can then be used to estimate the distance of the epicenter from a seismograph station. To answer the student's question directly, without a specific travel-time graph or the velocities of the P and S waves for the region in question, it's not possible to determine the exact distance to the epicenter. Typically, seismologists would use a travel-time graph that plots the time difference on the y-axis and the distance on the x-axis to find this distance.
If the velocities were provided, or if we had access to a travel-time graph for the specific region, we could determine the distance by plotting the time difference and reading the corresponding distance. As an example, given the speeds of the P-wave and S-wave and the difference in their arrival times, one could calculate the distance using the formula: Distance = Speed × Time. However, since we lack either the velocities or the specific graph, we cannot provide an exact answer to the student's query.
