Province of Potenza

Earthquakes in Paterno

1.3
very light
LATEST QUAKE

2 km South-East of Satriano di Lucania

6 days ago · 19 Aug, 19:27
Depth 11 km

Seismic activity in the surroundings

30 km radius
5
days since the last quake nearby
1,756
quakes recorded since 2014
~2 days
on average, one quake every
3.8
The strongest within 30 km
5 km South-East of Padula
107 months ago · 27 Oct, 00:38

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 = 0.256 g (10% probability of exceedance in 50 years, rigid soil).

Closest earthquake
Earthquake details
37
In the town
total on record
5
In the town
last 12 months
77
In the area
last 12 months
M3.8
Strongest ever
In the area

The “area” is Paterno plus nearby towns.

Last earthquake: 9 days ago · 3,423 inhabitants

The seismic history of Paterno

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

  1. 1996IV3 April 1996

    Moderate: felt by many indoors; glasses and dishes rattle.

    Irpinia earthquake (M4.9), epicentre 40 km away

  2. 1995III-IV29 May 1995

    Moderate: felt by many indoors; glasses and dishes rattle.

    Val d'Agri earthquake (M4.2), epicentre 28 km away

  3. 1991III-IV6 June 1991

    Moderate: felt by many indoors; glasses and dishes rattle.

    Potentino earthquake (M3.4), epicentre 29 km away

  4. 1991V-VI26 May 1991

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

    Potentino earthquake (M5.1), epicentre 36 km away

  5. 1990IV-V28 August 1990

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

    Potentino earthquake (M4.2), epicentre 43 km away

  6. 1990V26 August 1990

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

    Potentino earthquake (M4.0), epicentre 11 km away

  7. 1990VI5 May 1990

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

    Potentino earthquake (M5.8), epicentre 41 km away

  8. 1989V-VI29 May 1989

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

    Appennino lucano earthquake (M4.3), epicentre 19 km away

  9. 1982IV21 March 1982

    Moderate: felt by many indoors; glasses and dishes rattle.

    Golfo di Policastro earthquake (M5.2), epicentre 59 km away

  10. 1980VI14 May 1980

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

    Alta Val d'Agri earthquake (M4.8), epicentre 5 km away

  11. 1964V4 June 1964

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

    Vallo di Diano earthquake (M4.6), epicentre 6 km away

  12. 1857X16 December 1857

    Completely destructive: most buildings are destroyed.

    Basilicata earthquake (M7.1), epicentre 9 km away

…and 9 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 · 9 km from here
XICatastrophic: very few buildings remain standing; landslides and ground cracks.
15616.7
Vallo di Diano earthquake
19 August 1561 · 29 km from here
X-XICatastrophic: very few buildings remain standing; landslides and ground cracks.
15616.3
Vallo di Diano earthquake
31 July 1561 · 43 km from here
IX-XCompletely destructive: most buildings are destroyed.
19775.9
Golfo di Policastro earthquake
30 December 1977 · 50 km from here

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

The closest seismic structure

Irpinia-Agri Valley

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

estimated maximum magnitude 6.8between 1 and 14 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 20267eventsmax 2.1
Oct
Jan '25
Apr
Jul
Oct
Jan '26
Apr
Jul

Earthquake map

60 events
Magnitude:lightweakmoderatestrong

Earthquakes in the area

1.3
6 days ago
19 Aug, 19:27
1.3
6 days ago
19 Aug, 19:27
0.7
4 km North-West of Sarconi
18 km South-East · 10 km
8 days ago
17 Aug, 15:46
0.9
2 km North-West of Paterno
2 km North-West · 18 km
9 days ago
15 Aug, 20:31
2.1
4 km West of Abriola
17 km North · 27 km
14 days ago
11 Aug, 11:49
0.9
6 km West of Abriola
18 km North · 19 km
15 days ago
10 Aug, 12:36
0.8
7 km East of Sasso di Castalda
12 km North · 15 km
21 days ago
4 Aug, 17:46
0.6
1 km South of Satriano di Lucania
20 km North-West · 9 km
25 days ago
31 Jul, 19:29
1.1
26 days ago
30 Jul, 06:49
1.0
0 km North of Abriola
19 km North · 10 km
26 days ago
29 Jul, 21:31

Nearby towns

How does it compare with the surroundings?

Paterno records more quakes than the average of its province.

quietermore active
More epicentres than 76% of the 100 towns in the province.
Paterno37
Nearby towns average62

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: 076100

Frequently asked questions

Were there earthquakes today in Paterno?

No, no quakes were recorded today in the Paterno area: the latest nearby dates back to 6 days ago.

Is Paterno a seismic area?

Paterno 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 Paterno?

In the last ~12 years of INGV data, the strongest within 30 km of Paterno was magnitude 3.8, in 2017.

When was the last quake near Paterno?

The last quake recorded within 30 km of Paterno 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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