QuakeIndex

Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist

M 2.4md

Georgia, USA

Yes. A magnitude 2.4 earthquake was recorded in Georgia, USA, 57 km (36 mi) NW of Augusta-Richmond County, GA, at 12:17 am EST on 27 December 2020 (05:17 UTC), 5.5 km deep. 69 people have reported feeling it to USGS.

57 km (36 mi) NW of Augusta-Richmond County, GA

· 5.5 km deep · released about 110 lb of TNT

10 km30 km60 km120 km N Lincoln County 16 kmWilkes County 20 kmMcDuffie County 24 kmColumbia County 32 kmMcCormick County 32 kmTaliaferro County 33 kmWarren County 33 kmGlascock County 51 kmOglethorpe 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
Magnitude
M 2.4 (md)
Depth
5.5 km below the surface
Felt
69 reports · strongest reported intensity IV
Nearest
Lincoln County, 16 km NE
Status
Reviewed by a seismologist

USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 1904 days ago

This was a minor earthquake. Quakes this small are rarely felt and do not cause damage.

At this magnitude and depth, people at rest would likely notice it out to about 40 km (25 mi) from the epicentre. 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: Lincolnton, Washington, Thomson.

How big was it?

This earthquake released about 110 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 3.4 would have released about 32 times as much.

  1. Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 130,000× the energy of this one
  2. Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 95,000× the energy of this one
  3. Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 8.5× the energy of this one
  4. This earthquake M 2.4 about 110 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.

Where

Epicentre 33.6867, -82.5588. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Nearby places

PlaceDistanceDirection from the epicentre
Lincoln County, GA 16 km (10 mi) NE earthquakes near Lincoln County
Wilkes County, GA 20 km (13 mi) WNW earthquakes near Wilkes County
McDuffie County, GA 24 km (15 mi) SSE earthquakes near McDuffie County
Columbia County, GA 32 km (20 mi) ESE earthquakes near Columbia County
McCormick County, SC 32 km (20 mi) NE earthquakes near McCormick County
Taliaferro County, GA 33 km (20 mi) WSW earthquakes near Taliaferro County

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

Aftershocks so far

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

  1. 1.9 2 km WNW of McCormick, South Carolina
  2. 2.1 5 km NNE of Calhoun Falls, South Carolina
  3. 1.9 4 km N of Washington, Georgia
  4. 1.9 14 km NW of Grovetown, Georgia
  5. 2.1 7 km SSW of West Warrenton, Georgia
  6. 2.7 11 km ENE of Parksville, South Carolina
  7. 1.7 11 km N of Harlem, Georgia
  8. 1.9 12 km N of Harlem, Georgia
  9. 1.8 14 km WNW of Evans, Georgia
  10. 1.9 14 km NW of Grovetown, Georgia
  11. 2.0 14 km NW of Grovetown, Georgia
  12. 2.2 9 km SE of Lincolnton, Georgia
  13. 2.1 8 km NE of Parksville, South Carolina
  14. 2.1 15 km NW of Grovetown, Georgia
  15. 2.2 15 km N of Harlem, 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.