Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist
M 2.8md
Earthquake near Rockwood, TN
No earthquake was likely felt in Rockwood in the 24 hours to 2:29 am CST (08:29 UTC). The last one was M 2.4, 29 km (18 mi) E, at 12:54 am CDT on 30 October 2026, estimated intensity II (weak) in town; 3 felt reports to USGS. Every earthquake near Rockwood
This page: a magnitude 2.8 earthquake was recorded 10 km (6 mi) south-southeast of Rockwood, TN, at 5:48 am CDT on 22 October 2017 (10:48 UTC), 24 km deep. 6 people have reported feeling it to USGS.
USGS: 9 km SSE of Rockwood, Tennessee
66 km (41 mi) WSW of Knoxville, TN
- When
- 5:48 am CDT on 22 October 2017 ()
- Where
- 10 km (6 mi) south-southeast of Rockwood, TN · earthquakes near Rockwood
- Magnitude
- M 2.8 (md)
- Depth
- 24 km below the surface
- Felt
- 6 reports · strongest reported intensity III
- Nearest
- Roane County, 13 km ENE
- Status
- Reviewed by a seismologist
USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 2879 days ago
Earthquake alerts for Rockwood, TN
Get a notification in this browser when USGS records an earthquake near Rockwood, TN. 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 small earthquake. Shaking like this is often felt indoors nearby and very rarely causes damage.
At this magnitude and depth, people at rest would likely notice it out to about 54 km (34 mi) from the epicentre. In Rockwood, 10 km away, the estimate is intensity III (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.
Likely felt in: Decatur 33 km, intensity II · Athens 38 km, intensity II · Farragut 46 km, intensity II. Estimated for each town centre; each link is that town's own record.
How big was it?
This earthquake released about 400 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 3.8 would have released about 32 times as much.
- Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 38,000× the energy of this one
- Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 27,000× the energy of this one
- Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 2.4× the energy of this one
- This earthquake M 2.8 about 400 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 35.7848, -84.6450. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Roane County, TN | 13 km (8 mi) | ENE | earthquakes near Roane County |
| Loudon County, TN | 30 km (19 mi) | E | earthquakes near Loudon County |
| Meigs County, TN | 34 km (21 mi) | SSW | earthquakes near Meigs County |
| Rhea County, TN | 34 km (21 mi) | SW | earthquakes near Rhea County |
| Cumberland County, TN | 37 km (23 mi) | WNW | earthquakes near Cumberland County |
| Morgan County, TN | 39 km (24 mi) | N | earthquakes near Morgan 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.
- 2.2 10 km SE of Dayton, Tennessee
- 1.7 2 km NE of Tellico Village, Tennessee
- 2.1 2 km ESE of Tellico Village, Tennessee
- 2.2 2 km ESE of Tellico Village, Tennessee
- 2.3 1 km E of Tellico Village, Tennessee
- 1.7 3 km S of Huntsville, Tennessee
- 1.7 1 km N of Decatur, Tennessee
- 2.3 2 km NE of Tellico Village, Tennessee
- 2.2 9 km SSE of Coalfield, Tennessee
- 1.7 1 km N of Huntsville, Tennessee
- 1.7 11 km NNE of Decatur, Tennessee
- 2.2 2 km SSE of Englewood, Tennessee
- 2.1 2 km SSE of Englewood, Tennessee
- 2.1 12 km NNE of Decatur, TN
- 2.1 11 km NNE of Decatur, 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.