QuakeIndex

Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist

M 1.9md

Earthquake near Dalton, GA

USGS: 13 km SW of Tunnel Hill, Georgia

38 km (23 mi) SSE of Chattanooga, TN

8:38 am EDT, Mar 26, 2017 · · 3.1 km deep · released about 24 lb of TNT

Every earthquake near Dalton Felt it? Tell USGS Check my area
10 km30 km60 km120 km N Whitfield County 16 kmWalker County 16 kmCatoosa County 18 kmGordon County 35 kmChattooga County 36 kmMurray County 36 kmDade County 37 kmHamilton County 47 kmBradley County 52 km
Distance rings around the epicentre, with the nearest towns at their true direction and later quakes as coloured dots. Not a shaking map — see the USGS ShakeMap for that.
When
8:38 am EDT on 26 March 2017 ()
Where
15 km (9 mi) WSW of Dalton, GA · earthquakes near Dalton
Magnitude
M 1.9 (md)
Depth
3.1 km below the surface
Felt
no reports yet
Nearest
Whitfield County, 16 km ENE
Status
Reviewed by a seismologist

USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 3477 days ago

A magnitude 1.9 earthquake was recorded 15 km (9 mi) WSW of Dalton, GA, at 8:38 am EDT on 26 March 2017 (12:38 UTC). This was a minor earthquake. Quakes this small are rarely felt and do not cause damage.

Earthquakes near other towns within 30 km: LaFayette, Ringgold, Chickamauga, Varnell, Fort Oglethorpe, Fairview.

How big was it?

This earthquake released about 24 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 2.9 would have released about 32 times as much.

  1. Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 640,000× the energy of this one
  2. Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 450,000× the energy of this one
  3. Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 40× the energy of this one
  4. This earthquake M 1.9 about 24 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 34.7423, -85.1265. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Nearby places

PlaceDistanceDirection from the epicentre
Whitfield County, GA 16 km (10 mi) ENE earthquakes near Whitfield County
Walker County, GA 16 km (10 mi) W earthquakes near Walker County
Catoosa County, GA 18 km (11 mi) N earthquakes near Catoosa County
Gordon County, GA 35 km (22 mi) SE earthquakes near Gordon County
Chattooga County, GA 36 km (22 mi) SW earthquakes near Chattooga County
Murray County, GA 36 km (22 mi) E earthquakes near Murray County

Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.

Aftershocks so far

51 earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.

  1. 2.0 16 km SW of Dalton, Georgia
  2. 2.9 16 km NNE of Eton, Georgia
  3. 2.3 3 km WSW of Trenton, Georgia
  4. 1.6 16 km NE of Eton, Georgia
  5. 2.3 8 km NW of Linwood, Georgia
  6. 2.1 10 km SE of Wildwood Lake, Tennessee
  7. 2.1 10 km ENE of Mentone, Alabama
  8. 2.5 5 km NNE of East Brainerd, Tennessee
  9. 2.1 4 km S of Tunnel Hill, Georgia
  10. 2.4 9 km SW of Tunnel Hill, Georgia
  11. 2.3 4 km N of Ooltewah, Tennessee
  12. 2.0 5 km S of Tunnel Hill, Georgia
  13. 2.5 9 km SW of Wildwood Lake, TN
  14. 1.5 8.3 km NE of Wildwood Lake, TN
  15. 2.2 5 km WSW of Chickamauga, Georgia

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

QuakeIndex does not issue warnings. For earthquake early warning see ShakeAlert.