All earthquakes
1.1
very light
EARTHQUAKE DETAILS

M1.1 earthquake · 2 km North-West of Verzegnis (UD)

6 years ago · 14 Sept 2020, 12:45

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 39% of Italian events in the past year

Where

2 km North-West of VerzegnisEarthquakes in the province of UdineEarthquakes in Friuli-Venezia Giulia

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

19 events
Magnitude:lightweakmoderatestrong

The energy released

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

0.7kgof TNT equivalent
Less than the energy of a lightning bolt
M3
A magnitude 3 earthquake releases ×708 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 ≈ 30 s

Animation sped up ~6× compared to reality.

  • Udine
    43 km from the epicentre
    first tremor in ~7 s
    main shaking in ~12 s
  • Pordenone
    54 km from the epicentre
    first tremor in ~9 s
    main shaking in ~16 s
  • Treviso
    97 km from the epicentre
    first tremor in ~16 s
    main shaking in ~28 s
  • Trieste
    104 km from the epicentre
    first tremor in ~17 s
    main shaking in ~30 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 (~9 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 (M1.8, 6 years ago) in the same area. Aftershocks are normal after an earthquake and tend to fade over time.

1.8
The mainshock
5 km East of Arta Terme
6 years ago · 12 Sept 2020, 14:44
Activity in the area right now (30 km radius)
2
last 24 hours
7
last 7 days
21
last 30 days
12 before6 after
this quake
Strongest of the sequence1.8

How often does it happen here?

about every ~17 days

Within 50 km of this epicentre, a magnitude ≥ 2 earthquake has occurred on average this often: 252 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.

19766.5
Friuli earthquake
6 May 1976 · 21 km from here
IX-XCompletely destructive: most buildings are destroyed.
15116.3
Friuli-Slovenia earthquake
26 March 1511 · 28 km from here
IXDestructive: many buildings partly or fully collapse.
18736.3
Alpago Cansiglio earthquake
29 June 1873 · 50 km from here
IX-XCompletely destructive: most buildings are destroyed.
19286.0
Carnia earthquake
27 March 1928 · 3 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

But-Chiarso

The epicentre lies about 5 km from But-Chiarso, one of the seismic structures mapped by INGV geologists.

estimated maximum magnitude 6.3between 1 and 9 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

1.2
6 years ago
14 Sept 2020, 05:59
1.1
6 km East of Claut
28 km West · 10 km
6 years ago
15 Sept 2020, 10:40
1.8
5 km East of Arta Terme
17 km North-East · 10 km
6 years ago
12 Sept 2020, 14:44
0.5
1 km West of Ovaro
14 km North-West · 6 km
6 years ago
22 Sept 2020, 10:24
1.6
1 km West of Venzone
17 km East · 10 km
6 years ago
5 Sept 2020, 08:00
1.0
3 km South-East of Trasaghis
14 km South-East · 10 km
6 years ago
1 Oct 2020, 15:44
1.2
7 km West of Pontebba
27 km North-East · 9 km
6 years ago
27 Aug 2020, 13:01
1.1
2 km North-West of Lauco
9 km North-West · 9 km
6 years ago
27 Aug 2020, 10:40
1.0
5 km North-West of Moggio Udinese
21 km North-East · 10 km
6 years ago
26 Aug 2020, 18:48
0.6
3 km South of Bordano
15 km South-East · 6 km
6 years ago
7 Oct 2020, 21:14

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).