Parts of a Seismograph

Name the eight parts of a simple seismograph, from the base to the wavy line on the drum.

Parts of a Seismograph

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Write the name of each numbered part.Answer key

  1. Base
  2. Frame
  3. Spring
  4. Suspended mass (weight)
  5. Pen (stylus)
  6. Rotating drum
  7. Seismogram
  8. Ground motion

Drawn for this site on 2026-10-01 from plain geometry. Licence: own work.

Each numbered ring is a button. Use the arrow keys to move between them and Enter to choose. Names are read out in Study, and once a part is answered.

Next step Next: the parts of an earthquake

All 8 parts on the diagram

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  1. Base Fixed to the ground, so it shakes when the ground shakes.
  2. Frame Moves with the ground and holds up the spring.
  3. Spring Lets the mass lag behind when the frame moves.
  4. Suspended mass (weight) A heavy weight that tends to stay at rest.
  5. Pen (stylus) Fixed to the mass, it writes on the turning drum.
  6. Rotating drum Turns with the frame and carries the paper past the pen.
  7. Seismogram The record the pen leaves, with a wavy line for each shake.
  8. Ground motion Up-and-down shaking of the ground, which this kind of seismograph records.

How this list was compiled: Every name checked on 2026-10-01 in at least two of these. (1) U.S. Geological Survey, Earthquake Hazards Program, Seismographs: Keeping Track of Earthquakes, https://www.usgs.gov/programs/earthquake-hazards/seismographs-keeping-track-earthquakes (a free mass that tends to remain at rest and a supporting structure anchored in the ground; the mass hung from a spring in the vertical kind; the pen and the revolving drum; seismograms; three instruments at a station). (2) EarthScope Consortium (IRIS), animations of a drum-style vertical and horizontal seismograph, https://www.iris.edu/hq/inclass/animation/seismograph_vertical (the suspended mass, the spring, the stylus or pen fixed to the mass, ground motion). (3) Wikipedia, Seismometer, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seismometer (a weight hanging on a spring, both hung from a frame; a rotating drum attached to the frame and a pen attached to the weight; the base; the seismogram). Licence: own work

The drawing: Drawn for this site on 2026-10-01 from plain geometry. Own original drawing; nothing is traced or copied. Licence: own work

How it works

The parts of a seismograph, on a drawing of the simple kind that records up-and-down shaking: a frame, a spring, a heavy mass, a pen and a turning drum.

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How the parts work together

The base is fixed to the ground and carries the frame and the drum, so all three shake when the ground shakes. The heavy mass hangs on a spring and tends to stay at rest. The pen on the mass touches the paper on the turning drum, and the line it leaves is the seismogram.

Label the parts of the seismograph

This drawing records one direction only. A station uses three instruments: one like this for up-and-down motion and two for side-to-side motion, north-south and east-west.

Questions and answers

What are the parts of a seismograph?

A simple seismograph has a base fixed to the ground, a frame, a spring, a heavy suspended mass, a pen and a rotating drum wrapped in paper. The record the pen leaves is called a seismogram.

Why does the mass stay still during an earthquake?

Because of inertia. The USGS explains that the suspended mass tends to remain at rest while its support, anchored in the ground, moves with the vibrating Earth. The pen records the difference between the two.

What is the difference between a seismograph and a seismometer?

A seismometer is the detector. The USGS calls it a seismograph when the detector is connected to a system that makes a permanent recording. The recording itself is a seismogram.

Do seismographs still use pens and drums?

Mostly not. Modern instruments use electronic sensors and keep their records digitally. They rest on the same idea: a mass that stays at rest while its frame moves with the ground.

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