All earthquakes
1.7
very light
EARTHQUAKE DETAILS

11 km East of Bellaria-Igea Marina

115 months ago · 26 Mar, 20:34

A very light earthquake, probably not felt by people. Being deep, it is felt less at the surface.

Stronger than 78% of Italian events in the past year

Where

11 km East of Bellaria-Igea MarinaEarthquakes in the province of RiminiEarthquakes in Emilia-Romagna

How far away could it be felt?

A quake this small is usually not felt by people: only seismographs record it.

Statistical estimate from the Italian intensity attenuation model (INGV): actual perception depends on geology, buildings and depth. Very shallow events can be felt locally even below the threshold.

Earthquake map

8 events
Magnitude:lightweakmoderatestrong

The energy released

How much energy this quake unleashed, translated into everyday comparisons.

5.4kgof TNT equivalent
Less than the energy of a lightning bolt
M3
A magnitude 3 earthquake releases ×89 its energy
M1this quakeM3

Each extra magnitude unit releases about 32 times more energy: an M5 is not "a bit stronger" than an M4 — it is a different league.

Energy estimated with the standard Gutenberg–Richter relation; an average lightning bolt ≈ 1 billion joules. Indicative values.

The race of the seismic waves

Two waves set off from the hypocentre: the faster P wave arrives first with a sharp jolt; the S wave carries the actual shaking.

P waves — the first sharp jolt (~6 km/s)S waves — the strongest shaking (~3.5 km/s)
t ≈ 16 s

Animation sped up ~3× compared to reality.

  • Rimini
    12 km from the epicentre
    first tremor in ~6 s
    main shaking in ~11 s
  • Cesena
    30 km from the epicentre
    first tremor in ~8 s
    main shaking in ~13 s
  • Pesaro
    35 km from the epicentre
    first tremor in ~8 s
    main shaking in ~14 s
  • Forlì
    44 km from the epicentre
    first tremor in ~10 s
    main shaking in ~16 s

Theoretical times with average crustal speeds: real values vary with geology. The gap between P and S waves is what earthquake early-warning systems rely on.

How deep it was born

36 km
deep
4 times the height of Mount Everest

Being deep, it is felt less at the surface.

deeper than the area average (~22 km)

For the same magnitude, a shallow earthquake is felt much more than a deep one: the energy starts closer to the surface.

What kind of quake is this?

Aftershock

It is an aftershock: it follows a stronger quake (M2.2, 115 months ago) in the same area. Aftershocks are normal after an earthquake and tend to fade over time.

2.2
The mainshock
2 km North-East of Cesena
115 months ago · 21 Mar, 09:30
Activity in the area right now (30 km radius)
0
last 24 hours
0
last 7 days
2
last 30 days
2 before5 after
this quake
Strongest of the sequence2.2

How often does it happen here?

about every ~17 days

Within 50 km of this epicentre, a magnitude ≥ 2 earthquake has occurred on average this often: 248 events in the last 12 years of the INGV catalogue.

An average computed on the recent past: it tells how used this area is to shaking, not when the next quake will come — earthquakes cannot be predicted.

The great earthquakes in this area's history

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

19165.8
Riminese earthquake
16 August 1916 · 17 km from here
VIIIRuinous: partial collapses in ordinary buildings, widespread heavy damage.
19165.8
Riminese earthquake
17 May 1916 · 13 km from here
VIIIRuinous: partial collapses in ordinary buildings, widespread heavy damage.
18755.7
Costa romagnola earthquake
17 March 1875 · 11 km from here
VIIIRuinous: partial collapses in ordinary buildings, widespread heavy damage.
14835.7
Romagna earthquake
11 August 1483 · 29 km from here
VIII-IXDestructive: many buildings partly or fully collapse.

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

The closest seismic structure

Riminese offshore

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

estimated maximum magnitude 6.2between 3 and 7 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).

Other quakes in the area

1.2
4 km East of Cesena
27 km West · 33 km
115 months ago
26 Mar, 04:07
1.6
1 km South-East of Cesena
29 km West · 29 km
115 months ago
28 Mar, 11:09
2.2
2 km North-East of Cesena
28 km West · 31 km
115 months ago
21 Mar, 09:30
1.3
2 km East of Cesena
28 km West · 10 km
114 months ago
2 Apr, 07:00
1.6
4 km East of Cesena
26 km West · 31 km
114 months ago
2 Apr, 11:20
1.8
2 km East of Cesena
28 km West · 26 km
114 months ago
2 Apr, 12:29
1.6
3 km North-East of Cesena
28 km West · 31 km
114 months ago
3 Apr, 23:04

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

Estimates computed by Meteare on INGV data (Gutenberg–Richter relation; Italian macroseismic intensity attenuation model).

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