All earthquakes
0.7
very light
EARTHQUAKE DETAILS

1 km East of Gubbio

74 months ago · 4 May, 12:06

A very light earthquake, probably not felt by people. At only a few km deep the shaking is felt more sharply at the surface.

Stronger than 11% of Italian events in the past year

Where

1 km East of GubbioEarthquakes in the province of PerugiaEarthquakes in Umbria

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

61 events
Magnitude:lightweakmoderatestrong

The energy released

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

0.2kgof TNT equivalent
Less than the energy of a lightning bolt
M3
A magnitude 3 earthquake releases ×2,818 its energy
M0this quakeM2

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.

  • Perugia
    29 km from the epicentre
    first tremor in ~5 s
    main shaking in ~9 s
  • Foligno
    44 km from the epicentre
    first tremor in ~8 s
    main shaking in ~13 s
  • Arezzo
    53 km from the epicentre
    first tremor in ~9 s
    main shaking in ~15 s
  • Pesaro
    64 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

10 km
shallow
1.1 times the height of Mount Everest

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?

Aftershock

It is an aftershock: it follows a stronger quake (M2.4, 75 months ago) in the same area. Aftershocks are normal after an earthquake and tend to fade over time.

2.4
The mainshock
6 km North of Gubbio
75 months ago · 5 Apr, 16:33
Activity in the area right now (30 km radius)
9
last 24 hours
38
last 7 days
167
last 30 days
174 before139 after
this quake
Strongest of the sequence2.4

How often does it happen here?

about every ~5 days

Within 50 km of this epicentre, a magnitude ≥ 2 earthquake has occurred on average this often: 871 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 · 30 km from here
XCompletely destructive: most buildings are destroyed.
18326.4
Valle Umbra earthquake
13 January 1832 · 39 km from here
XCompletely destructive: most buildings are destroyed.
17516.4
Appennino umbro-marchigiano earthquake
27 July 1751 · 19 km from here
XCompletely destructive: most buildings are destroyed.
13526.3
Alta Valtiberina earthquake
25 December 1352 · 37 km from here
IXDestructive: many buildings partly or fully collapse.

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

The closest seismic structure

Gubbio Basin

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

estimated maximum magnitude 7.0between 2 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

0.5
6 km South-West of Apecchio
23 km North-West · 7 km
74 months ago
4 May, 10:28
0.8
3 km South of Serra Sant'Abbondio
23 km North-East · 15 km
74 months ago
4 May, 19:17
0.6
4 km South-East of Pietralunga
14 km North-West · 5 km
74 months ago
4 May, 22:33
0.6
10 km North-East of Gubbio
10 km North · 10 km
74 months ago
4 May, 00:40
0.8
2 km West of Nocera Umbra
29 km South-East · 10 km
74 months ago
3 May, 21:03
1.3
4 km South of Serra Sant'Abbondio
22 km North-East · 14 km
74 months ago
3 May, 19:38
1.5
3 km South of Serra Sant'Abbondio
22 km North-East · 13 km
74 months ago
3 May, 18:04
0.9
9 km North-West of Umbertide
28 km West · 11 km
74 months ago
5 May, 06:25
0.6
5 km South-West of Frontone
19 km North-East · 10 km
74 months ago
5 May, 07:28
0.8
74 months ago
5 May, 07:35

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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