Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist
M 2.5md
Earthquake near Greenback, TN
No earthquake was likely felt in Greenback in the 24 hours to 9:47 am EST (14:47 UTC). The last one was M 2.4, 27 km (17 mi) NW, at 1:54 am EDT on 30 October 2026, estimated intensity II (weak) in town; 3 felt reports to USGS. Every earthquake near Greenback
This page: a magnitude 2.5 earthquake was recorded 5 km (3 mi) north-northeast of Greenback, TN, at 5:21 am EDT on 23 August 2023 (09:21 UTC), 9.9 km deep. 6 people have reported feeling it to USGS.
USGS: 4 km NNE of Greenback, Tennessee
35 km (22 mi) SSW of Knoxville, TN
- When
- 5:21 am EDT on 23 August 2023 ()
- Where
- 5 km (3 mi) north-northeast of Greenback, TN · earthquakes near Greenback
- Magnitude
- M 2.5 (md)
- Depth
- 9.9 km below the surface
- Felt
- 6 reports · strongest reported intensity III
- Nearest
- Loudon County, 14 km WNW
- Status
- Reviewed by a seismologist
USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 1110 days ago
Earthquake alerts for Greenback, 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 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 44 km (27 mi) from the epicentre. In Greenback, 5 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: Maryville 18 km, intensity II · Farragut 20 km, intensity II · Knoxville 36 km, intensity II · Seymour 44 km, intensity II. Estimated for each town centre; each link is that town's own record.
How big was it?
This earthquake released about 160 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 3.5 would have released about 32 times as much.
- Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 92,000× the energy of this one
- Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 65,000× the energy of this one
- Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 5.8× the energy of this one
- This earthquake M 2.5 about 160 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 35.7042, -84.1587. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Loudon County, TN | 14 km (9 mi) | WNW | earthquakes near Loudon County |
| Blount County, TN | 21 km (13 mi) | E | earthquakes near Blount County |
| Monroe County, TN | 30 km (18 mi) | SSW | earthquakes near Monroe County |
| Roane County, TN | 37 km (23 mi) | WNW | earthquakes near Roane County |
| Knox County, TN | 38 km (23 mi) | NNE | earthquakes near Knox County |
| Anderson County, TN | 46 km (29 mi) | N | earthquakes near Anderson County |
Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.
Aftershocks so far
46 earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.
- 2.1 16 km SE of Vonore, Tennessee
- 2.2 4 km N of Englewood, Tennessee
- 1.9 2 km NE of Greenback, Tennessee
- 2.3 2 km NE of Greenback, Tennessee
- 2.0 6 km ENE of Etowah, Tennessee
- 1.7 4 km ENE of Niota, Tennessee
- 2.1 3 km ENE of Niota, Tennessee
- 2.1 6 km E of Friendsville, Tennessee
- 1.7 6 km SSE of Friendsville, Tennessee
- 1.6 16 km SE of Vonore, Tennessee
- 1.8 4 km SSW of Tellico Village, Tennessee
- 1.9 1 km WNW of Tellico Village, Tennessee
- 2.3 1 km NW of Niota, Tennessee
- 1.7 7 km SW of Maryville, Tennessee
- 2.1 7 km SW of Maryville, 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.