All earthquakes
6.1
very strong
EARTHQUAKE DETAILS

15 km West of Longobardi

3 months ago · 2 Jun, 00:12

A very strong earthquake, severe earthquake, damage likely. Being deep, it is felt less at the surface.

No. 1 of the year in ItalyStronger than 99% of Italian events in the past yearNo. 1 of the year in CalabriaThe strongest of the past 12 months within 50 km

Where

15 km West of LongobardiEarthquakes in the province of CosenzaEarthquakes in Calabria

How far away could it be felt?

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

  • up to ~111 km · felt only by some, at rest
    ≈ 1.8m 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

11 events
Magnitude:lightweakmoderatestrong

The energy released

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

21ktof TNT equivalent
89,125 lightning bolts
M3
×44,668 the energy of a magnitude 3 earthquake
M5this quakeM7

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 ≈ 77 s

Animation sped up ~14× compared to reality.

  • Cosenza
    32 km from the epicentre
    first tremor in ~44 s
    main shaking in ~75 s
  • Lamezia Terme
    41 km from the epicentre
    first tremor in ~44 s
    main shaking in ~75 s
  • Corigliano-Rossano
    66 km from the epicentre
    first tremor in ~45 s
    main shaking in ~76 s
  • Catanzaro
    68 km from the epicentre
    first tremor in ~45 s
    main shaking in ~77 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

259 km
deep
29 times the height of Mount Everest

Being deep, it is felt less at the surface.

deeper than the area average (~53 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 5 aftershocks within 30 km. Aftershocks tend to fade in number and strength over time.

Activity in the area right now (30 km radius)
1
last 24 hours
3
last 7 days
5
last 30 days
5 before5 after
this quake
Strongest of the sequence2.0

How often does it happen here?

It is the first magnitude ≥ 6 earthquake recorded within 50 km since 2014, the start of our archive.

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.

16387.1
Calabria centrale earthquake
27 March 1638 · 36 km from here
XICatastrophic: very few buildings remain standing; landslides and ground cracks.
19057.0
Calabria centrale earthquake
8 September 1905 · 43 km from here
X-XICatastrophic: very few buildings remain standing; landslides and ground cracks.
11846.8
Valle del Crati earthquake
24 May 1184 · 33 km from here
IXDestructive: many buildings partly or fully collapse.
18546.3
Cosentino earthquake
12 February 1854 · 33 km from here
XCompletely destructive: most buildings are destroyed.

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

The closest seismic structure

Savuto Valley

The epicentre lies about 28 km from Savuto Valley, one of the seismic structures mapped by INGV geologists.

estimated maximum magnitude 7.1between 2 and 14 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

1.8
3 months ago
7 Jun, 21:31
1.7
3 months ago
9 Jun, 01:59
1.4
8 km West of Amantea
14 km South-East · 47 km
3 months ago
22 May, 05:29
1.2
12 km West of Longobardi
3 km East · 51 km
2 months ago
18 Jun, 06:04
1.5
11 km West of Falerna
24 km South-East · 14 km
4 months ago
13 May, 06:51
1.7
5 km South-West of Paola
19 km North-East · 58 km
2 months ago
22 Jun, 15:22
1.0
23 km West of Paola
17 km North-West · 6 km
2 months ago
24 Jun, 00:51
1.9
6 km West of Amantea
15 km South-East · 11 km
4 months ago
3 May, 15:24
2.0
3 km South-West of Amantea
20 km South-East · 17 km
4 months ago
3 May, 15:24
1.8
4 km South-West of Amantea
18 km South-East · 18 km
4 months ago
3 May, 15:24

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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