It will almost certainly take several tens of thousands of years, if the growth rate for L'ihi is comparable to that of other Hawaiian volcanoes (about 0.1 foot per year averaged over geologic time).
A: The Richter scale is used to quantitatively measure the magnitude of an earthquake. This tool was devised by the seismologist Charles F. Richter in 1935. Full Answer >
The Richter Scale measures magnitude, the amount of energy released by an earthquake by measuring how big a shock wave is. Each number on the scale is 10 times more powerful than the number below it. A magnitude 3 earthquake is ten times greater that a magnitude 2 and is easily felt. An earthquake that registers 6 or more is considered a major quake.