Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist
M 2.8md
Kentucky-Tennessee border region
Yes. A magnitude 2.8 earthquake was recorded in the Kentucky-Tennessee border region, 49 km (31 mi) NNE of Knoxville, TN, at 5:55 pm EDT on 20 May 2023 (21:55 UTC), 17 km deep. 9 people have reported feeling it to USGS.
49 km (31 mi) NNE of Knoxville, TN
- When
- Magnitude
- M 2.8 (md)
- Depth
- 17 km below the surface
- Felt
- 9 reports · strongest reported intensity IV
- Nearest
- Union County, 14 km SW
- Status
- Reviewed by a seismologist
USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 1206 days ago
Earthquake alerts for Speedwell, TN
Get a notification in this browser when USGS records an earthquake near Speedwell, 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 61 km (38 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.
Likely felt in: Fincastle 27 km, intensity III · Mascot 36 km, intensity II · Knoxville 49 km, intensity II. Estimated for each town centre; each link is that town's own record.
How big was it?
This earthquake released about 530 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 29,000× the energy of this one
- Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 20,000× the energy of this one
- Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 1.8× the energy of this one
- This earthquake M 2.8 about 530 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 36.3827, -83.7465. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Union County, TN | 14 km (8 mi) | SW | earthquakes near Union County |
| Claiborne County, TN | 15 km (9 mi) | NNE | earthquakes near Claiborne County |
| Grainger County, TN | 24 km (15 mi) | ESE | earthquakes near Grainger County |
| Campbell County, TN | 37 km (23 mi) | W | earthquakes near Campbell County |
| Bell County, KY | 39 km (24 mi) | N | earthquakes near Bell County |
| Jefferson County, TN | 46 km (29 mi) | SE | earthquakes near Jefferson County |
Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.
Aftershocks so far
30 earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.
- 2.3 1 km W of Rutledge, Tennessee
- 2.0 4 km WNW of Mascot, Tennessee
- 1.9 3 km NW of Mascot, Tennessee
- 2.1 2 km S of Blaine, Tennessee
- 1.9 5 km NNW of Mascot, Tennessee
- 1.9 9 km WSW of Mascot, Tennessee
- 2.1 5 km ESE of Pineville, Kentucky
- 2.6 11 km SW of Middlesboro, Kentucky
- 1.8 0 km ESE of Knoxville, Tennessee
- 2.2 10 km ENE of Knoxville, Tennessee
- 2.3 11 km ESE of Mascot, Tennessee
- 2.0 8 km ENE of Knoxville, Tennessee
- 2.3 10 km S of Jellico, Tennessee
- 2.3 16 km N of Maynardville, Tennessee
- 2.4 5 km NNE of Bean Station, 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.