Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist
M 1.6md
Earthquake near Varnell, GA
No earthquake was likely felt in Varnell in the 24 hours to 5:01 pm EST (22:01 UTC). The last one was M 2.1, 3 km (2 mi) SW, at 3:35 pm EDT on 16 March 2026, estimated intensity II (weak) in town. Every earthquake near Varnell
This page: a magnitude 1.6 earthquake was recorded 6 km (4 mi) west-northwest of Varnell, GA, at 3:11 am EST on 18 January 2020 (08:11 UTC), 19 km deep.
USGS: 5 km WNW of Varnell, Georgia
25 km (16 mi) SE of Chattanooga, TN
- When
- 3:11 am EST on 18 January 2020 ()
- Where
- 6 km (4 mi) west-northwest of Varnell, GA · earthquakes near Varnell
- Magnitude
- M 1.6 (md)
- Depth
- 19 km below the surface
- Felt
- no reports yet
- Nearest
- Catoosa County, 11 km WSW
- Status
- Reviewed by a seismologist
USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 2448 days ago
Earthquake alerts for Varnell, GA
Get a notification in this browser when USGS records an earthquake near Varnell, GA. No account or email needed.
Alerts are on for .
Not a warning. An alert comes after USGS publishes a quake, usually minutes after the shaking. For early warning use ShakeAlert, through your phone's Wireless Emergency Alerts or the MyShake app.
This was a minor earthquake. Quakes this small are rarely felt and do not cause damage.
At this magnitude and depth it was probably too small to be felt, even directly above it. In Varnell, 6 km away, the estimate is intensity II (weak). Estimated from magnitude, depth and distance with the intensity equation USGS Did You Feel It? uses; felt reports, where there are any, are the measurement.
Earthquakes near other towns within 30 km: Ringgold, Apison, East Brainerd, Collegedale, Dalton, Fort Oglethorpe.
How big was it?
This earthquake released about 7.6 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 2.6 would have released about 32 times as much.
- Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 2,000,000× the energy of this one
- Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 1,400,000× the energy of this one
- Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 130× the energy of this one
- This earthquake M 1.6 about 7.6 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 34.9295, -85.0265. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Catoosa County, GA | 11 km (7 mi) | WSW | earthquakes near Catoosa County |
| Whitfield County, GA | 15 km (9 mi) | SSE | earthquakes near Whitfield County |
| Bradley County, TN | 29 km (18 mi) | NNE | earthquakes near Bradley County |
| Murray County, GA | 30 km (19 mi) | ESE | earthquakes near Murray County |
| Hamilton County, TN | 31 km (19 mi) | NNW | earthquakes near Hamilton County |
| Walker County, GA | 33 km (21 mi) | SW | earthquakes near Walker County |
Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.
Aftershocks so far
42 earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.
- 2.4 9 km WNW of Hopewell, Tennessee
- 1.9 6 km NW of Eton, Georgia
- 2.3 8 km W of Tunnel Hill, Georgia
- 1.7 8 km ENE of Wildwood Lake, Tennessee
- 2.2 7 km ENE of East Cleveland, Tennessee
- 2.0 2 km SSE of Varnell, Georgia
- 2.0 8 km N of Trion, Georgia
- 1.5 13 km SW of Dalton, Georgia
- 2.0 13 km SW of Dalton, Georgia
- 2.3 13 km SW of Dalton, Georgia
- 2.2 13 km SW of Dalton, Georgia
- 2.2 2 km NW of Eton, Georgia
- 2.2 4 km SSE of Lakesite, Tennessee
- 1.9 7 km E of Benton, Tennessee
- 2.3 4 km ESE of East Cleveland, 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.