All earthquakes
2.9
light
EARTHQUAKE DETAILS

1 km West of Collebeato

98 months ago · 21 May, 05:49

A light earthquake, rarely felt by people. At only a few km deep the shaking is felt more sharply at the surface.

Stronger than 98% of Italian events in the past yearNo. 4 of the year in Lombardia

Where

1 km West of CollebeatoEarthquakes in the province of BresciaEarthquakes in Lombardia

How far away could it be felt?

An estimate of how far people may have felt this quake.

  • up to ~8 km · felt only by some, at rest
    ≈ 290,000 people live in this area

The coloured rings on the map below show these distances.

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

1 events
Magnitude:lightweakmoderatestrong

The energy released

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

338kgof TNT equivalent
1.4 lightning bolts
M3
A magnitude 3 earthquake releases ×1.4 its energy
M2this quakeM4

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 ≈ 19 s

Animation sped up ~4× compared to reality.

  • Brescia
    7 km from the epicentre
    first tremor in ~2 s
    main shaking in ~3 s
  • Bergamo
    43 km from the epicentre
    first tremor in ~7 s
    main shaking in ~12 s
  • Cremona
    52 km from the epicentre
    first tremor in ~9 s
    main shaking in ~15 s
  • Verona
    66 km from the epicentre
    first tremor in ~11 s
    main shaking in ~19 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

7 km
shallow

At only a few km deep the shaking is felt more sharply at the surface.

in line with the area average (~10 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
0
last 30 days

No other quakes within 30 km in the 30 days around the event.

How often does it happen here?

about every ~4 months

Within 50 km of this epicentre, a magnitude ≥ 2.5 earthquake has occurred on average this often: 33 events in the last 11 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.

12225.7
Bresciano-Veronese earthquake
25 December 1222 · 34 km from here
18025.6
Valle dell'Oglio earthquake
12 May 1802 · 33 km from here
VIII-IXDestructive: many buildings partly or fully collapse.
19015.4
Garda occidentale earthquake
30 October 1901 · 23 km from here
VII-VIIIRuinous: partial collapses in ordinary buildings, widespread heavy damage.
16935.2
Mantovano earthquake
6 July 1693 · 49 km from here
VIIVery strong: hard to stand; chimneys and roof tiles fall, serious damage to weaker buildings.

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

The closest seismic structure

Western S-Alps internal thrust

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

estimated maximum magnitude 6.9between 5 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).

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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