Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist
M 2.3md
Earthquake near Morristown, TN
USGS: 4 km SSW of Morristown, Tennessee
62 km (39 mi) ENE of Knoxville, TN
- When
- 4:43 am EST on 20 February 2016 ()
- Where
- 4 km (3 mi) SSW of Morristown, TN · earthquakes near Morristown
- Magnitude
- M 2.3 (md)
- Depth
- 0.7 km below the surface
- Felt
- 1 report · strongest reported intensity II
- Nearest
- Hamblen County, 6 km NE
- Status
- Reviewed by a seismologist
USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 1523 days ago
A magnitude 2.3 earthquake was recorded 4 km (3 mi) SSW of Morristown, TN, at 4:43 am EST on 20 February 2016 (09:43 UTC). 1 person has reported feeling it to USGS. This was a minor earthquake. Quakes this small are rarely felt and do not cause damage.
Earthquakes near other towns within 30 km: White Pine, Jefferson City, Bean Station, Dandridge, Rutledge, New Market.
How big was it?
This earthquake released about 94 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 3.3 would have released about 32 times as much.
- Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 160,000× the energy of this one
- Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 110,000× the energy of this one
- Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 10× the energy of this one
- This earthquake M 2.3 about 94 lb of TNT
Energy from the Gutenberg–Richter relation (log10E = 1.5M + 4.8), rounded to two figures; bar length is magnitude, which is already a logarithm of energy. Magnitudes of past earthquakes from the USGS catalogue.
For this area
No earthquake of M4 or more has been recorded within 50 km since our catalogue begins in 2016.
Before 2016, the USGS record since 1900 lists no earthquake of M5 or more within 50 km.
Since 2016: the QuakeIndex catalogue (US, M1.5+), built from the USGS FDSN event service. Before 2016: USGS ComCat, M5+ from 1900. Distances are between epicentres. This is the record, not a forecast.
Where
Epicentre 36.1755, -83.3078. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hamblen County, TN | 6 km (4 mi) | NE | earthquakes near Hamblen County |
| Jefferson County, TN | 19 km (12 mi) | SW | earthquakes near Jefferson County |
| Grainger County, TN | 21 km (13 mi) | WNW | earthquakes near Grainger County |
| Cocke County, TN | 33 km (21 mi) | SSE | earthquakes near Cocke County |
| Hancock County, TN | 39 km (24 mi) | N | earthquakes near Hancock County |
| Greene County, TN | 41 km (26 mi) | E | earthquakes near Greene County |
Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.
Aftershocks so far
52 earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.
- 2.5 11 km WNW of Rutledge, Tennessee
- 2.5 5 km ENE of Rutledge, Tennessee
- 2.1 7 km NNW of New Market, Tennessee
- 1.8 6 km NW of Mascot, Tennessee
- 2.0 3 km ENE of Mosheim, Tennessee
- 1.7 5 km WNW of Sevierville, Tennessee
- 2.2 5 km W of Sevierville, Tennessee
- 2.2 5 km NNW of Greeneville, Tennessee
- 2.6 2 km SSE of Mascot, Tennessee
- 3.0 7 km SW of New Tazewell, Tennessee
- 2.4 7 km SW of Mascot, Tennessee
- 3.4 7 km NE of Maynardville, Tennessee
- 2.0 8 km SE of Rutledge, Tennessee
- 2.2 1 km SSW of Morristown, Tennessee
- 2.5 3 km E of Rutledge, Tennessee
Counted from the QuakeIndex database, which ingests the USGS feed every 30 seconds · as of . QuakeIndex does not forecast aftershocks. When USGS issues an operational aftershock forecast it appears on the USGS event page.
On USGS
- The official USGS event page — the source of record for every value above
- Did you feel it? Report it to USGS — reports go to USGS, not to us
- ShakeMap for this event, when USGS has produced one
QuakeIndex does not issue warnings. For earthquake early warning see ShakeAlert.