mining explosion · reviewed by a seismologist
M 2.0ml
Earthquake near Watertown, NY
USGS: 5 km N of Pamelia Center, New York
- When
- 1:10 pm EDT on 11 September 2019 ()
- Where
- 12 km (8 mi) N of Watertown, NY · earthquakes near Watertown
- Magnitude
- M 2.0 (ml)
- Depth
- 0.0 km below the surface
- Felt
- no reports yet
- Nearest
- Jefferson County, 16 km SW
- Status
- Reviewed by a seismologist
USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 2493 days ago
A magnitude 2.0 earthquake was recorded 12 km (8 mi) N of Watertown, NY, at 1:10 pm EDT on 11 September 2019 (17:10 UTC). This was a minor earthquake. Quakes this small are rarely felt and do not cause damage.
Earthquakes near other towns within 30 km: Calcium, Fort Drum, Brownville, Black River, Dexter, Philadelphia.
USGS catalogues this as mining explosion, not an earthquake.
How big was it?
This earthquake released about 30 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 3.0 would have released about 32 times as much.
- Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 500,000× the energy of this one
- Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 350,000× the energy of this one
- Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 32× the energy of this one
- This earthquake M 2.0 about 30 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 44.0861, -75.8961. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jefferson County, NY | 16 km (10 mi) | SW | earthquakes near Jefferson County |
| Lewis County, NY | 49 km (31 mi) | SE | earthquakes near Lewis County |
| Oswego County, NY | 74 km (46 mi) | SSW | earthquakes near Oswego County |
| St. Lawrence County, NY | 79 km (49 mi) | NE | earthquakes near St. Lawrence County |
| Oneida County, NY | 101 km (63 mi) | SSE | earthquakes near Oneida County |
| Herkimer County, NY | 102 km (63 mi) | ESE | earthquakes near Herkimer County |
Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.
Aftershocks so far
12 earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.
- 1.6 1 km WSW of Adams Center, New York
- 1.5 1 km SW of Adams Center, New York
- 1.6 2 km WNW of Rodman, New York
- 1.5 New York
- 1.8 1 km SW of Adams Center, New York
- 1.8 1 km WSW of Adams Center, New York
- 1.5 0 km WNW of Adams Center, New York
- 1.6 1 km WSW of Adams Center, New York
- 1.5 1 km SW of Adams Center, New York
- 1.5 0 km NE of Adams Center, New York
- 3.6 New York
- 2.6 1 km W of Adams Center, New York
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.