Earthquakes in Novate Mezzola
Seismic activity in the surroundings
30 km radiusINGV catalogue epicentres of the last ~12 years, within the given radius from the town centre.
How seismic is this area?
Medium-low seismicity: strong quakes are rare, but not impossible.
Official Civil Protection classification (upd. 2025), used for building codes.
Hazard describes the long-term expected shaking: it is not a forecast. Technical value: ag = 0.052 g (10% probability of exceedance in 50 years, rigid soil).
Why the ground rarely shakes here
Novate Mezzola sits in one of the most stable areas of Italy: far from the boundary between the Eurasian and African plates, on ancient, rigid crust that hardly accumulates tectonic stress any more.
That is why earthquakes here are rare and almost always weak: a small geological privilege.
The “area” is Novate Mezzola plus nearby towns.
The seismic history of Novate Mezzola
The earthquakes that were actually felt in Novate Mezzola over the centuries, with the intensity observed on site (Mercalli MCS scale).
- 2001NF17 July 2001
Imperceptible: only instruments record it.
Val Venosta earthquake (M4.8), epicentre 131 km away
- 1991III-IV20 November 1991
Moderate: felt by many indoors; glasses and dishes rattle.
Grigioni, Vaz earthquake (M4.7), epicentre 55 km away
- 1983III9 November 1983
Light: felt by few people, like a passing truck.
Parmense earthquake (M5.0), epicentre 175 km away
- 1927V13 August 1927
Rather strong: felt by almost everyone; hanging objects swing.
Alta Engadina earthquake (M4.4), epicentre 42 km away
- 1917IV-V9 December 1917
Rather strong: felt by almost everyone; hanging objects swing.
Alta Engadina earthquake (M4.6), epicentre 33 km away
Source: Italian Macroseismic Database DBMI15 (INGV, CC BY 4.0).
The great earthquakes in this area's history
Almost a thousand years of catalogues: the strongest documented events within ~50 km.
Source: Parametric Catalogue of Italian Earthquakes CPTI15 (INGV, CC BY 4.0).
The closest seismic structure
The town lies about 53 km from Western S-Alps internal thrust, one of the seismic structures mapped by INGV geologists.
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).
Area over time
Earthquake map
2 eventsEarthquakes in the area
Nearby towns
How does it compare with the surroundings?
Novate Mezzola is among the quietest towns of its province: very few epicentres are recorded here.
Each quake is attributed to the town closest to its epicentre: the numbers describe the area, not the municipal territory alone.
Context
Province of Sondrio5 events · 30gLombardy region11 events · 30gFrequently asked questions
Were there earthquakes today in Novate Mezzola?
No, no quakes were recorded today in the Novate Mezzola area: the latest nearby dates back to 45 months ago.
Is Novate Mezzola a seismic area?
Novate Mezzola is classified in seismic zone 3 by the Civil Protection. Medium-low seismicity: strong quakes are rare, but not impossible.
What was the strongest earthquake near Novate Mezzola?
In the last ~12 years of INGV data, the strongest within 30 km of Novate Mezzola was magnitude 3.3, in 2017.
When was the last quake near Novate Mezzola?
The last quake recorded within 30 km of Novate Mezzola was 1 month ago.
Tip. Click a nearby town to explore its seismicity.
Data: INGV — National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology (CC-BY 4.0)