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3.8
weak
EARTHQUAKE DETAILS

6 km South-West of Bonifati

80 months ago · 23 Jan, 05:32

A weak earthquake, felt by some of the population. Being deep, it is felt less at the surface.

No. 5 of the month in ItalyStronger than 99% of Italian events in the past year

Where

6 km South-West of BonifatiEarthquakes in the province of CosenzaEarthquakes in Calabria

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

6 events
Magnitude:lightweakmoderatestrong

The energy released

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

7.6tof TNT equivalent
32 lightning bolts
M3
×16 the energy of a magnitude 3 earthquake
M3this quakeM5

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 ≈ 83 s

Animation sped up ~15× compared to reality.

  • Cosenza
    44 km from the epicentre
    first tremor in ~46 s
    main shaking in ~79 s
  • Corigliano-Rossano
    49 km from the epicentre
    first tremor in ~46 s
    main shaking in ~79 s
  • Lamezia Terme
    72 km from the epicentre
    first tremor in ~47 s
    main shaking in ~81 s
  • Catanzaro
    94 km from the epicentre
    first tremor in ~48 s
    main shaking in ~83 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

274 km
deep
31 times the height of Mount Everest

Being deep, it is felt less at the surface.

deeper than the area average (~39 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?

Isolated quake

In the 30 days around this event no other quakes were recorded within 30 km: a one-off episode, very common in Italy.

Activity in the area right now (30 km radius)
0
last 24 hours
0
last 7 days
3
last 30 days
3 before2 after
this quake
Strongest of the sequence1.9

How often does it happen here?

about every ~5 months

Within 50 km of this epicentre, a magnitude ≥ 3.5 earthquake has occurred on average this often: 29 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.

11846.8
Valle del Crati earthquake
24 May 1184 · 31 km from here
IXDestructive: many buildings partly or fully collapse.
18546.3
Cosentino earthquake
12 February 1854 · 47 km from here
XCompletely destructive: most buildings are destroyed.
18355.9
Cosentino earthquake
12 October 1835 · 42 km from here
XCompletely destructive: most buildings are destroyed.
17675.9
Valle del Crati earthquake
14 July 1767 · 38 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

Crati Valley

The epicentre lies about 27 km from Crati Valley, one of the seismic structures mapped by INGV geologists.

estimated maximum magnitude 6.6between 1 and 10 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

1.1
3 km West of Maierà
21 km North · 24 km
81 months ago
14 Jan, 21:21
1.8
3 km West of Buonvicino
17 km North · 32 km
81 months ago
14 Jan, 19:21
0.9
3 km South of Paola
26 km South-East · 54 km
81 months ago
11 Jan, 16:03
1.9
13 km West of Bonifati
10 km West · 84 km
80 months ago
7 Feb, 23:44
1.1
79 months ago
17 Feb, 02:13

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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