Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist
M 3.0ml
Earthquake near Calais, ME
No earthquake was likely felt in Calais in the 24 hours to 12:30 am EST (05:30 UTC). The last one was M 3.5, 212 km (132 mi) NNE, at 8:36 pm EST on 1 December 2024, estimated intensity II (weak) in town; 74 felt reports to USGS. Every earthquake near Calais
This page: a magnitude 3.0 earthquake was recorded 13 km (8 mi) southeast of Calais, ME, at 7:31 am EST on 9 December 2020 (12:31 UTC), 7.7 km deep. 125 people have reported feeling it to USGS.
USGS: 4 km WNW of Robbinston, Maine
- When
- 7:31 am EST on 9 December 2020 ()
- Where
- 13 km (8 mi) southeast of Calais, ME · earthquakes near Calais
- Magnitude
- M 3.0 (ml)
- Depth
- 7.7 km below the surface
- Felt
- 125 reports · strongest reported intensity IV
- Nearest
- Washington County, 38 km WSW
- Status
- Reviewed by a seismologist
USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 2092 days ago
Earthquake alerts for Calais, ME
Get a notification in this browser when USGS records an earthquake near Calais, ME. 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 73 km (45 mi) from the epicentre. In Calais, 13 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: Calais 13 km, intensity III. Estimated for each town centre; each link is that town's own record.
How big was it?
This earthquake released about 950 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 4.0 would have released about 32 times as much.
- Northridge, California 1994 M 6.7 350,000× the energy of this one
- Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 16,000× the energy of this one
- Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 11,000× the energy of this one
- This earthquake M 3.0 about 950 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 lists one earthquake of M5 or more within 50 km:
- 5.7 Passamaquoddy Bay area, Maine · 11 km SSW of this epicentre
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 45.0951, -67.1595. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Washington County, ME | 38 km (24 mi) | WSW | earthquakes near Washington County |
| Hancock County, ME | 112 km (70 mi) | WSW | earthquakes near Hancock County |
| Penobscot County, ME | 123 km (76 mi) | WNW | earthquakes near Penobscot County |
Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.
Aftershocks so far
10 earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.
- 1.8 14 km ESE of Saint Andrews, Canada
- 1.5 20 km ENE of Saint Andrews, Canada
- 2.2 22 km NE of Saint Andrews, Canada
- 1.6 8 km ENE of Lubec, Maine
- 1.8 24 km ENE of Saint Andrews, Canada
- 2.0 14 km NNE of Eastport, Maine
- 1.7 9 km E of Saint Andrews, Canada
- 2.6 8 km SE of Saint Andrews, Canada
- 1.6 Maine
- 1.5 39 km NE of Saint Andrews, Canada
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.