4.1 magnitude recorded in eastern Tennessee
Just before 9 a.m. Saturday, a 4.1 magnitude earthquake was recorded just south of Greenback, Tenn. at a depth of 15.5 miles, according to the United States Geological Survey.
The earthquake was felt across eastern Tennessee, North Carolina and north Georgia.
According to the USGS, the epicenter for Saturday’s earthquake was just off of US-129 in Tallassee, Tenn.
According to community responses on the USGS website, the earthquake was felt as far south as just north of Atlanta and as far north as Knoxville.
Aftershocks are unlikely, but there is a 24% chance of a 3 magnitude aftershock in the next week in the immediate area, according to the USGS.
This was the fourth reported earthquake in eastern Tennessee in the last two weeks ranging from a 1.6 magnitude in Madisonville, Tenn. on April 29 to Saturday’s 4.1.
The USGS website says that the Eastern Tennessee Seismic Zone is one of the most active in the southeast, but is not known to have large earthquakes. The largest in the area was a 4.6 magnitude earthquake on April 29, 2003 near Fort Payne, Ala.
They added that earthquakes too small to be felt in the seismic zone are frequent, with hundreds recorded in the past decades.
The USGS also said that earthquakes east of the Rocky Mountains can be felt over a larger area compared to those on the west coast for a similar magnitude earthquake.
Bedrock of eastern Tennessee originated when the Appalachian Mountains were formed over a hundred million years ago, which does not link the area to a well-studied fault system like the San Andreas fault system in California. This leads scientists to not be able to name the specific fault that causes the earthquakes in the region, as well as earthquakes east of the Rocky Mountains.
Residents of Cherokee County immediately took to social media reporting that they felt the earthquake across the county.
For more information, visit earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/se60605931/executive.