Province of Potenza

Earthquakes in Moliterno

0.7
very light
LATEST QUAKE

4 km North-West of Sarconi

8 days ago · 17 Aug, 15:46
Depth 10 km

Seismic activity in the surroundings

30 km radius
5
days since the last quake nearby
1,619
quakes recorded since 2014
~3 days
on average, one quake every
4.1
The strongest within 30 km
2 km South-East of Tortora
120 months ago · 29 Oct, 13:58

INGV catalogue epicentres of the last ~12 years, within the given radius from the town centre.

How seismic is this area?

Zone1
Seismic zone 1

The most severe class: strong earthquakes are possible here and buildings follow the strictest anti-seismic rules.

Official Civil Protection classification (upd. 2025), used for building codes.

High
Expected shaking, compared with the other Italian municipalities (INGV MPS04 model)

Hazard describes the long-term expected shaking: it is not a forecast. Technical value: ag = 0.263 g (10% probability of exceedance in 50 years, rigid soil).

Closest earthquake
Earthquake details
113
In the town
total on record
6
In the town
last 12 months
64
In the area
last 12 months
M3.8
Strongest ever
In the area

The “area” is Moliterno plus nearby towns.

Last earthquake: 1 month ago · 4,182 inhabitants

The seismic history of Moliterno

The earthquakes that were actually felt in Moliterno over the centuries, with the intensity observed on site (Mercalli MCS scale).

  1. 1998V9 September 1998

    Rather strong: felt by almost everyone; hanging objects swing.

    Appennino lucano earthquake (M5.5), epicentre 20 km away

  2. 1991V-VI26 May 1991

    Strong: felt by everyone, many get scared; objects fall, first light damage to buildings.

    Potentino earthquake (M5.1), epicentre 52 km away

  3. 1991V5 May 1991

    Rather strong: felt by almost everyone; hanging objects swing.

    Val d'Agri earthquake (M4.0), epicentre 8 km away

  4. 1990V-VI5 May 1990

    Strong: felt by everyone, many get scared; objects fall, first light damage to buildings.

    Potentino earthquake (M5.8), epicentre 59 km away

  5. 1988VI12 January 1988

    Strong: felt by everyone, many get scared; objects fall, first light damage to buildings.

    Cilento earthquake (M4.5), epicentre 35 km away

  6. 1988V-VI8 January 1988

    Strong: felt by everyone, many get scared; objects fall, first light damage to buildings.

    Pollino earthquake (M4.7), epicentre 24 km away

  7. 1980VI23 November 1980

    Strong: felt by everyone, many get scared; objects fall, first light damage to buildings.

    Irpinia-Basilicata earthquake (M6.8), epicentre 84 km away

  8. 1980V14 May 1980

    Rather strong: felt by almost everyone; hanging objects swing.

    Alta Val d'Agri earthquake (M4.8), epicentre 18 km away

  9. 1932V3 December 1932

    Rather strong: felt by almost everyone; hanging objects swing.

    Marsico Vetere earthquake (M4.2), epicentre 11 km away

  10. 1930VI23 July 1930

    Strong: felt by everyone, many get scared; objects fall, first light damage to buildings.

    Irpinia earthquake (M6.7), epicentre 105 km away

  11. 1910V7 June 1910

    Rather strong: felt by almost everyone; hanging objects swing.

    Irpinia-Basilicata earthquake (M5.8), epicentre 84 km away

  12. 1857VIII16 December 1857

    Ruinous: partial collapses in ordinary buildings, widespread heavy damage.

    Basilicata earthquake (M7.1), epicentre 15 km away

…and 25 more documented effects in this town's history.

Source: Italian Macroseismic Database DBMI15 (INGV, CC BY 4.0).

The great earthquakes in this area's history

Almost a thousand years of catalogues: the strongest documented events within ~50 km.

18577.1
Basilicata earthquake
16 December 1857 · 15 km from here
XICatastrophic: very few buildings remain standing; landslides and ground cracks.
15616.7
Vallo di Diano earthquake
19 August 1561 · 48 km from here
X-XICatastrophic: very few buildings remain standing; landslides and ground cracks.
19775.9
Golfo di Policastro earthquake
30 December 1977 · 44 km from here
18365.9
Appennino lucano earthquake
20 November 1836 · 11 km from here
IXDestructive: many buildings partly or fully collapse.

Source: Parametric Catalogue of Italian Earthquakes CPTI15 (INGV, CC BY 4.0).

The closest seismic structure

Rimendiello-Mormanno

The town sits above this source area: the deep structure where this area's earthquakes can originate.

estimated maximum magnitude 6.6between 1 and 12 km deep

Faults are mapped to build better and understand the territory: knowing them says nothing about when an earthquake will occur, which remains unpredictable. Source: DISS 3.3 (INGV, CC BY 4.0).

Area over time

August 20265eventsmax 1.3
Oct
Jan '25
Apr
Jul
Oct
Jan '26
Apr
Jul

Earthquake map

60 events
Magnitude:lightweakmoderatestrong

Earthquakes in the area

0.7
4 km North-West of Sarconi
5 km North-East · 10 km
8 days ago
17 Aug, 15:46
1.1
7 km West of Castelsaraceno
8 km South-East · 10 km
8 days ago
17 Aug, 13:23
1.0
7 km West of Castelsaraceno
8 km South-East · 10 km
8 days ago
17 Aug, 13:01
0.9
2 km North-West of Paterno
22 km North-West · 18 km
9 days ago
15 Aug, 20:31
1.3
21 days ago
4 Aug, 06:43
1.5
4 km North-East of Rivello
16 km South-West · 11 km
26 days ago
30 Jul, 11:56
1.3
4 km West of Nemoli
15 km South-West · 10 km
26 days ago
30 Jul, 11:50
1.2
1 km West of Paterno
19 km North-West · 10 km
1 month ago
25 Jul, 12:40
1.3
1 km West of Paterno
20 km North-West · 9 km
1 month ago
25 Jul, 12:36
2.0
1 km West of Paterno
20 km North-West · 9 km
1 month ago
25 Jul, 12:24

Nearby towns

How does it compare with the surroundings?

Moliterno sits in one of the most seismically active areas of its province: quakes are a familiar presence here, almost always light.

quietermore active
More epicentres than 95% of the 100 towns in the province.
Moliterno113
Nearby towns average77

Each quake is attributed to the town closest to its epicentre: the numbers describe the area, not the municipal territory alone.

Context

Province of Potenza26 events · 30gBasilicata region31 events · 30g
ISTAT code: 076050

Frequently asked questions

Were there earthquakes today in Moliterno?

No, no quakes were recorded today in the Moliterno area: the latest nearby dates back to 8 days ago.

Is Moliterno a seismic area?

Moliterno is classified in seismic zone 1 by the Civil Protection. The most severe class: strong earthquakes are possible here and buildings follow the strictest anti-seismic rules.

What was the strongest earthquake near Moliterno?

In the last ~12 years of INGV data, the strongest within 30 km of Moliterno was magnitude 4.1, in 2016.

When was the last quake near Moliterno?

The last quake recorded within 30 km of Moliterno was 6 days ago.

Tip. Click a nearby town to explore its seismicity.

Data: INGV — National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology (CC-BY 4.0)

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