All earthquakes
4.1
moderate
EARTHQUAKE DETAILS

2 km North-West of Colli al Metauro

56 months ago · 29 Oct, 12:53

A moderate earthquake, felt by people in the area. Being deep, it is felt less at the surface.

No. 18 of the year in ItalyStronger than 99% of Italian events in the past yearNo. 2 of the year in Marche

Where

2 km North-West of Colli al MetauroEarthquakes in the province of Pesaro e UrbinoEarthquakes in Marche

How far away could it be felt?

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

  • up to ~35 km · felt only by some, at rest
    ≈ 544,000 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

18 events
Magnitude:lightweakmoderatestrong

The energy released

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

21tof TNT equivalent
89 lightning bolts
M3
×45 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 ≈ 18 s

Animation sped up ~3× compared to reality.

  • Fano
    9 km from the epicentre
    first tremor in ~6 s
    main shaking in ~11 s
  • Pesaro
    11 km from the epicentre
    first tremor in ~6 s
    main shaking in ~11 s
  • Rimini
    41 km from the epicentre
    first tremor in ~9 s
    main shaking in ~16 s
  • Ancona
    53 km from the epicentre
    first tremor in ~11 s
    main shaking in ~18 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
4.1 times the height of Mount Everest

Being deep, it is felt less at the surface.

deeper than the area average (~11 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?

Mainshock

It is the strongest quake of its sequence: so far it has been followed by 15 aftershocks within 30 km. Aftershocks tend to fade in number and strength over time.

Activity in the area right now (30 km radius)
0
last 24 hours
2
last 7 days
5
last 30 days
2 before15 after
this quake
Strongest of the sequence2.7

How often does it happen here?

about every ~15 months

Within 50 km of this epicentre, a magnitude ≥ 4 earthquake has occurred on average this often: 9 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.

17816.5
Cagliese earthquake
3 June 1781 · 35 km from here
XCompletely destructive: most buildings are destroyed.
17416.2
Fabrianese earthquake
24 April 1741 · 39 km from here
IXDestructive: many buildings partly or fully collapse.
19305.8
Senigallia earthquake
30 October 1930 · 42 km from here
VIII-IXDestructive: many buildings partly or fully collapse.
19165.8
Riminese earthquake
17 May 1916 · 41 km from here
VIIIRuinous: partial collapses in ordinary buildings, widespread heavy damage.

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

The closest seismic structure

Pesaro-Senigallia

The epicentre lies about 6 km from Pesaro-Senigallia, one of the seismic structures mapped by INGV geologists.

estimated maximum magnitude 6.3between 3 and 8 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

2.7
4 km West of Colli al Metauro
4 km South-West · 33 km
56 months ago
29 Oct, 12:56
1.9
3 km West of Colli al Metauro
3 km South-West · 35 km
56 months ago
29 Oct, 13:00
1.4
3 km South of Mombaroccio
2 km West · 36 km
56 months ago
29 Oct, 13:11
2.3
56 months ago
29 Oct, 13:25
2.6
4 km South-West of Colli al Metauro
5 km South-West · 34 km
56 months ago
29 Oct, 15:07
1.3
4 km West of Colli al Metauro
4 km South-West · 35 km
56 months ago
30 Oct, 19:44
1.2
6 km North of Serra Sant'Abbondio
27 km South-West · 20 km
56 months ago
27 Oct, 19:47
1.3
56 months ago
1 Nov, 14:48
1.1
4 km South-East of Urbania
29 km South-West · 11 km
56 months ago
5 Nov, 13:58
0.9
7 km East of Cagli
23 km South-West · 10 km
56 months ago
6 Nov, 11:19

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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