Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist
M 2.3md
Earthquake near Laurel Park, NC
USGS: 0 km ESE of Laurel Park, North Carolina
29 km (18 mi) S of Asheville, NC
- When
- 7:51 am EST on 5 December 2021 ()
- Where
- in Laurel Park, NC · earthquakes near Laurel Park
- Magnitude
- M 2.3 (md)
- Depth
- 0.1 km below the surface
- Felt
- 26 reports · strongest reported intensity IV
- Nearest
- Henderson County, 3 km NNE
- Status
- Reviewed by a seismologist
USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 57 days ago
A magnitude 2.3 earthquake was recorded in Laurel Park, NC, at 7:51 am EST on 5 December 2021 (12:51 UTC). 26 people have 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: Valley Hill, Hendersonville, Balfour, Barker Heights, Mountain Home, Flat Rock.
How big was it?
This earthquake released about 72 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 5.8 210,000× the energy of this one
- Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 150,000× the energy of this one
- Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 13× the energy of this one
- This earthquake M 2.3 about 72 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 lists one earthquake of M5 or more within 50 km:
- 5.2 Near Asheville, North Carolina · 21 km N of this epicentre
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 35.3130, -82.4910. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Henderson County, NC | 3 km (2 mi) | NNE | earthquakes near Henderson County |
| Polk County, NC | 30 km (18 mi) | E | earthquakes near Polk County |
| Transylvania County, NC | 32 km (20 mi) | WSW | earthquakes near Transylvania County |
| Buncombe County, NC | 33 km (21 mi) | N | earthquakes near Buncombe County |
| Greenville County, SC | 48 km (30 mi) | SSE | earthquakes near Greenville County |
| Pickens County, SC | 52 km (32 mi) | SSW | earthquakes near Pickens 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.
- 2.3 7 km SE of Brevard, North Carolina
- 2.1 8 km W of Rosman, North Carolina
- 2.0 8 km ENE of Weaverville, North Carolina
- 2.0 7 km SSW of Canton, North Carolina
- 1.8 8 km W of Rosman, North Carolina
- 1.8 8 km SSE of Clyde, North Carolina
- 2.0 7 km SSE of Clyde, North Carolina
- 2.1 8 km S of West Canton, North Carolina
- 1.7 8 km ENE of Weaverville, North Carolina
- 1.9 7 km SSE of Clyde, North Carolina
- 1.9 8 km E of Weaverville, North Carolina
- 1.9 4 km N of West Canton, North Carolina
- 1.6 9 km W of Rosman, North Carolina
- 1.7 5 km W of Rosman, North Carolina
- 1.7 9 km W of Rosman, North Carolina
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.