• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Weatherboy

Weatherboy Weather News, Maps, RADAR, Satellite, and Forecasts.

  • Local
  • Earth Science News
  • RADAR
  • Current Warnings
  • Satellite
  • Current Maps
  • Forecast Maps
  • Video

Weak Quake Rattles Western Tennessee, Near New Madrid Seismic Zone Center

by Weatherboy Team Meteorologist - September 30, 2022

The epicenter of today's earthquake is located at the orange dot inside the concentric circles.  Image: USGS
The epicenter of today’s earthquake is located at the orange dot inside the concentric circles. Image: USGS



According to USGS, a weak earthquake rattled portions of western Tennessee today in a region not far from the heart of the New Madrid Seismic Zone, which is centered under New Madrid County, Missouri. The earthquake struck at 9:04 am this morning and was rated as a weak magnitude 1.6 event. The epicenter was roughly 3 km deep and struck just under 2 miles southwest of Ridgely, Tennessee. As is usually the case with seismic events rated under a 2.0 magnitude, USGS reported that no one used their “Did you feel it? tool on their website to report the event. Today’s earthquake follows a similar earthquake which struck on September 25, ending a 5 day pause in which no earthquakes were recorded in the state.

The September 25  earthquake rated as a magnitude 1.9 event; it rattled the area beneath Madisonville, Tennessee just inside of the Joyce Kilmer-Slickrock Wilderness. The earthquake hit at 7:52 am on the 25th; the epicenter was roughly 10.4 km deep.

Today's earthquake happened just inside the Joyce Kilmer - Slickrock Wilderness area. Image: USGS
Today’s earthquake happened just inside the Joyce Kilmer – Slickrock Wilderness area. Image: USGS

While the quake was weak, it adds to the number of earthquakes that have struck Tennessee within recent weeks.  Several dozen earthquakes have hit Tennessee since mid August.

Most of the earthquakes over the last 30 days have been located in the western part of the state, where there has been considerable seismic activity in recent weeks. Western Tennessee is located within the New Madrid Seismic Zone, an area famous for a catastrophic series of earthquakes in 1811-1812 that were centered near New Madrid County, Missouri. The New Madrid Seismic Zone is also known as NMSZ for short.

 

While the U.S. West Coast is best known for their earthquakes, there is considerable earthquake risk elsewhere in the country. Image: USGS
While the U.S. West Coast is best known for their earthquakes, there is considerable earthquake risk elsewhere in the country. Image: USGS

 

According to the Missouri Department of Public Safety, the New Madrid Seismic Zone is active and averages about 200 measured events per year (magnitude 1.0 or greater). Tremors large enough to be felt (magnitude 2.5 – 3.0) occur annually. On average every 18 months, the fault releases a shock of magnitude 4.0 or greater, which is capable of local minor damage. A magnitude 5.0 or greater occurs about once per decade, can cause significant damage and be felt in several states.




According to USGS, earthquake volume in the NMSZ is running about 300% above normal this summer. While the volume has been high, the intensity has been low with no earthquake creating any damage or injuries.

While eastern Tennessee isn’t part of the NMSZ, they too get quakes from time to time.  USGS says western Tennessee has a higher frequency of damaging earthquake shaking, the risk isn’t that low in eastern Tennessee.  In the eastern part of the state, USGS says its likely this area would see 50-100 damaging earthquakes over 10,000 years. While this number is low, it is much higher than it is elsewhere in the eastern half of the United States, where it’s likely to have 10 or less earthquakes over the same period.

Primary Sidebar

Sponsored Ad

Search

Latest News

  • Severe Weather Threat Returns to Mississippi Valley on Friday
  • Deadline for SBA Aid for Kauai Drought Coming Soon
  • Another Atmospheric River Event Slams into West Coast; More Epic Rain, Snow Expected
  • Anniversary of 1964 Great Alaskan “Good Friday” Earthquake and Tsunami
  • Tornado Watches, Warnings Issued as Severe Weather Impacts Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, & Gerogia
  • After Violent Night, Storms Shift to Ohio and Pennsylvania
  • Preliminary NTSB Report Shows Something other than Turbulence Killed Passenger on New England Flight
  • SEVERE Geomagnetic Storm Alert Issued; Massive Aurora On Display in North America
About | Careers | Contact | Contests
Terms | Privacy | Ad Choices
Weatherboy is a (R) Registered Trademark of isarithm LLC, All Rights Reserved.
All content herein is Copyright by Isarithm LLC 1997-2022