Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist
M 2.9md
Earthquake near Cleveland, TN
No earthquake was likely felt in Cleveland in the 24 hours to 3:32 am EST (08:32 UTC). The last one was M 2.3, 16 km (10 mi) ENE, at 2:03 am EDT on 3 August 2025, estimated intensity II (weak) in town; 6 felt reports to USGS. Every earthquake near Cleveland
This page: a magnitude 2.9 earthquake was recorded 26 km (16 mi) southeast of Cleveland, TN, at 11:47 pm EST on 20 January 2022 (04:47 UTC), 15 km deep. 676 people have reported feeling it to USGS.
USGS: 16 km NNE of Eton, Georgia
50 km (31 mi) ESE of Chattanooga, TN · 28 km (17 mi) SSE of Cleveland, TN
- When
- 11:47 pm EST on 20 January 2022 ()
- Where
- 26 km (16 mi) southeast of Cleveland, TN · earthquakes near Cleveland
- Magnitude
- M 2.9 (md)
- Depth
- 15 km below the surface
- Felt
- 676 reports · strongest reported intensity VI
- Nearest
- Murray County, 19 km S
- Status
- Reviewed by a seismologist
USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 1685 days ago
Earthquake alerts for Cleveland, TN
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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 68 km (42 mi) from the epicentre. In Cleveland, 26 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.
Earthquakes near other towns within 30 km: Wildwood Lake, South Cleveland, Chatsworth, Benton, Varnell, East Cleveland.
How big was it?
This earthquake released about 780 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 3.9 would have released about 32 times as much.
- Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 19,000× the energy of this one
- Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 14,000× the energy of this one
- Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 1.2× the energy of this one
- This earthquake M 2.9 about 780 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 34.9677, -84.7133. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Murray County, GA | 19 km (12 mi) | S | earthquakes near Murray County |
| Polk County, TN | 22 km (14 mi) | NE | earthquakes near Polk County |
| Bradley County, TN | 25 km (15 mi) | NNW | earthquakes near Bradley County |
| Whitfield County, GA | 30 km (18 mi) | SW | earthquakes near Whitfield County |
| Fannin County, GA | 38 km (23 mi) | ESE | earthquakes near Fannin County |
| Gilmer County, GA | 39 km (24 mi) | SE | earthquakes near Gilmer 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.
- 2.1 12 km E of Benton, Tennessee
- 1.9 5 km ESE of Benton, Tennessee
- 1.8 4 km SE of Apison, Tennessee
- 2.0 6 km ENE of Etowah, Tennessee
- 2.0 1 km WSW of Collegedale, Tennessee
- 2.2 2 km S of Ringgold, Georgia
- 2.0 4 km SSW of Benton, Tennessee
- 2.5 4 km N of Tunnel Hill, Georgia
- 2.0 10 km SSW of Chatsworth, Georgia
- 2.0 5 km S of Englewood, Tennessee
- 2.4 9 km NE of Eton, Georgia
- 1.8 11 km SW of Tellico Plains, Tennessee
- 2.2 4 km WSW of Tunnel Hill, Georgia
- 2.0 10 km WNW of Resaca, Georgia
- 2.3 10 km WNW of Resaca, 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
- 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.