QuakeIndex

Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist

M 1.8ml

Earthquake near Millinocket, ME

USGS: 23 km WNW of Millinocket, Maine

5:53 am EDT, May 17, 2016 · · 3.9 km deep · released about 15 lb of TNT

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10 km30 km60 km120 km N Piscataquis County 22 kmPenobscot County 44 kmSomerset County 80 kmAroostook County 111 km
Distance rings around the epicentre, with the nearest towns at their true direction and later quakes as coloured dots. Not a shaking map — see the USGS ShakeMap for that.
When
5:53 am EDT on 17 May 2016 ()
Where
23 km (14 mi) WNW of Millinocket, ME · earthquakes near Millinocket
Magnitude
M 1.8 (ml)
Depth
3.9 km below the surface
Felt
no reports yet
Nearest
Piscataquis County, 22 km NNW
Status
Reviewed by a seismologist

USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 3724 days ago

A magnitude 1.8 earthquake was recorded 23 km (14 mi) WNW of Millinocket, ME, at 5:53 am EDT on 17 May 2016 (09:53 UTC). This was a minor earthquake. Quakes this small are rarely felt and do not cause damage.

How big was it?

This earthquake released about 15 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 2.8 would have released about 32 times as much.

  1. Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 1,000,000× the energy of this one
  2. Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 710,000× the energy of this one
  3. Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 63× the energy of this one
  4. This earthquake M 1.8 about 15 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 45.7407, -68.9804. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Nearby places

PlaceDistanceDirection from the epicentre
Piscataquis County, ME 22 km (13 mi) NNW earthquakes near Piscataquis County
Penobscot County, ME 44 km (27 mi) SSE earthquakes near Penobscot County
Somerset County, ME 80 km (50 mi) WSW earthquakes near Somerset County
Aroostook County, ME 111 km (69 mi) NNE earthquakes near Aroostook County
Washington County, ME 137 km (85 mi) SE earthquakes near Washington County
Franklin County, ME 141 km (87 mi) SW earthquakes near Franklin County

Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.

Aftershocks so far

22 earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.

  1. 1.5 15 km ENE of Greenville, Maine
  2. 1.5 20 km WSW of Millinocket, Maine
  3. 1.5 23 km WNW of Millinocket, Maine
  4. 2.5 35 km NW of Millinocket, Maine
  5. 1.5 31 km W of Millinocket, Maine
  6. 1.5 24 km WNW of Millinocket, Maine
  7. 1.8 19 km SW of Millinocket, Maine
  8. 1.8 38 km WNW of Millinocket, Maine
  9. 1.8 Maine
  10. 1.6 Maine
  11. 1.6 34 km WNW of Millinocket, Maine
  12. 1.8 33 km WNW of Millinocket, Maine
  13. 1.9 36 km ENE of Greenville, Maine
  14. 1.9 23 km W of Millinocket, Maine
  15. 1.8 11 km NNW of Millinocket, Maine

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

QuakeIndex does not issue warnings. For earthquake early warning see ShakeAlert.