Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist
M 1.6ml
Earthquake near Waterville, ME
No earthquake was likely felt in Waterville in the 24 hours to 3:07 pm EST (20:07 UTC). The last one was M 3.8, 182 km (113 mi) SSW, at 10:22 am EST on 27 January 2025, estimated intensity II (weak) in town; 42,440 felt reports to USGS. Every earthquake near Waterville
This page: a magnitude 1.6 earthquake was recorded 16 km (10 mi) northwest of Waterville, ME, at 4:37 pm EDT on 15 March 2024 (20:37 UTC), 9.2 km deep. 1 person has reported feeling it to USGS.
USGS: 3 km ENE of Smithfield, Maine
- When
- 4:37 pm EDT on 15 March 2024 ()
- Where
- 16 km (10 mi) northwest of Waterville, ME · earthquakes near Waterville
- Magnitude
- M 1.6 (ml)
- Depth
- 9.2 km below the surface
- Felt
- 1 report · strongest reported intensity III
- Nearest
- Kennebec County, 25 km S
- Status
- Reviewed by a seismologist
USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 908 days ago
Earthquake alerts for Waterville, ME
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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 it was probably too small to be felt, even directly above it. In Waterville, 16 km away, the estimate is intensity II (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: Norridgewock, Rome, Oakland, Skowhegan, Fairfield, Winslow.
How big was it?
This earthquake released about 7.6 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 2.6 would have released about 32 times as much.
- Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 2,000,000× the energy of this one
- Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 1,400,000× the energy of this one
- Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 130× the energy of this one
- This earthquake M 1.6 about 7.6 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 44.6416, -69.7926. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kennebec County, ME | 25 km (16 mi) | S | earthquakes near Kennebec County |
| Waldo County, ME | 57 km (35 mi) | ESE | earthquakes near Waldo County |
| Franklin County, ME | 62 km (38 mi) | NW | earthquakes near Franklin County |
| Androscoggin County, ME | 62 km (39 mi) | SSW | earthquakes near Androscoggin County |
| Lincoln County, ME | 75 km (47 mi) | SSE | earthquakes near Lincoln County |
| Oxford County, ME | 76 km (47 mi) | WSW | earthquakes near Oxford County |
Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.
Aftershocks so far
7 earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.
- 1.5 6 km WNW of Windsor, Maine
- 1.6 3 km SE of Madison, Maine
- 1.6 6 km W of Oakland, Maine
- 1.9 3 km SSW of Embden, Maine
- 2.8 6 km W of Gardiner, Maine
- 2.1 6 km NNE of Windsor, Maine
- 1.8 9 km N of Oakland, 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
- 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.