All earthquakes
1.8
very light
EARTHQUAKE DETAILS

1 km West of Vico del Gargano

22 months ago · 4 Nov, 08:05

A very light earthquake, probably not felt by people. Being deep, it is felt less at the surface.

Stronger than 82% of Italian events in the past year

Where

1 km West of Vico del GarganoEarthquakes in the province of FoggiaEarthquakes in Puglia

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

11 events
Magnitude:lightweakmoderatestrong

The energy released

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

7.6kgof TNT equivalent
Less than the energy of a lightning bolt
M3
A magnitude 3 earthquake releases ×63 its energy
M1this quakeM3

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 ≈ 21 s

Animation sped up ~4× compared to reality.

  • Manfredonia
    35 km from the epicentre
    first tremor in ~8 s
    main shaking in ~13 s
  • San Severo
    49 km from the epicentre
    first tremor in ~10 s
    main shaking in ~17 s
  • Foggia
    55 km from the epicentre
    first tremor in ~11 s
    main shaking in ~18 s
  • Barletta
    67 km from the epicentre
    first tremor in ~12 s
    main shaking in ~21 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

30 km
deep
3.4 times the height of Mount Everest

Being deep, it is felt less at the surface.

deeper than the area average (~15 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 (M2.9, 23 months ago) in the same area. Aftershocks are normal after an earthquake and tend to fade over time.

2.9
The mainshock
18 km North of Cagnano Varano
23 months ago · 9 Oct, 11:22
Activity in the area right now (30 km radius)
1
last 24 hours
1
last 7 days
5
last 30 days
6 before4 after
this quake
Strongest of the sequence2.9

How often does it happen here?

about every ~8 days

Within 50 km of this epicentre, a magnitude ≥ 2 earthquake has occurred on average this often: 507 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.

16466.7
Gargano earthquake
31 May 1646 · 5 km from here
XCompletely destructive: most buildings are destroyed.
18755.9
Gargano earthquake
6 December 1875 · 31 km from here
VIIIRuinous: partial collapses in ordinary buildings, widespread heavy damage.
14145.8
Gargano earthquake
1414 · 18 km from here
VIII-IXDestructive: many buildings partly or fully collapse.
16475.7
Gargano earthquake
5 May 1647 · 37 km from here
VII-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

San Marco in Lamis-Mattinata

The epicentre lies about 14 km from San Marco in Lamis-Mattinata, one of the seismic structures mapped by INGV geologists.

estimated maximum magnitude 7.0between 0 and 25 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

1.4
22 months ago
4 Nov, 06:47
2.5
5 km South-East of Vico del Gargano
5 km South-East · 22 km
22 months ago
6 Nov, 08:30
1.5
9 km West of Monte Sant'Angelo
17 km South-West · 18 km
22 months ago
2 Nov, 05:44
1.6
5 km West of Monte Sant'Angelo
17 km South · 24 km
21 months ago
21 Nov, 21:34
1.0
5 km West of Monte Sant'Angelo
15 km South-West · 18 km
23 months ago
17 Oct, 13:37
2.6
6 km North-West of Rodi Garganico
15 km North-West · 25 km
21 months ago
26 Nov, 18:17
2.9
18 km North of Cagnano Varano
27 km North-West · 5 km
23 months ago
9 Oct, 11:22
2.2
14 km North of Rodi Garganico
20 km North · 30 km
21 months ago
1 Dec, 22:32
2.2
7 km South of Carpino
13 km South-West · 25 km
23 months ago
5 Oct, 18:20
1.5
13 km East of Mattinata
26 km South-East · 23 km
23 months ago
5 Oct, 17:21

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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