You felt it. Or maybe you didn't, but your Twitter feed—pardon me, X feed—is blowing up with people asking the same thing. Did an earthquake happen today? It's that weird, unsettling moment where the floor feels like it turned into liquid for a split second. Or maybe it was just a heavy truck passing by. Honestly, the anxiety is often worse than the actual shaking.
The short answer is almost always yes.
Somewhere on this planet, the ground is moving. Right now. In fact, according to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), there are about 50 earthquakes every single day that are strong enough to be noticed. If you're looking for the specific one that just rattled your coffee cup, you've got to look at the data coming out of the National Earthquake Information Center (NEIC). They track everything from the tiny "did I imagine that?" micro-quakes to the massive, structural-damage events.
Why you probably felt that vibration
If you are in a place like California, Japan, or even Oklahoma lately, a small rumble isn't exactly "stop everything" news. But for someone in a traditionally quiet zone, a 3.5 magnitude quake feels like the end of the world.
Seismology is tricky.
A lot of people think the "size" of the quake (the magnitude) is all that matters. Not true. Depth is the real kicker. A shallow quake—say, 5 kilometers deep—will feel like a sledgehammer hitting the bottom of your house. A much larger quake 100 kilometers down might just feel like a gentle sway.
Did an earthquake happen today near you? If you’re in the Pacific Ring of Fire, the answer is statistically "probably." This horseshoe-shaped zone is where about 90% of the world's earthquakes occur. We are talking about massive tectonic plates like the Pacific Plate grinding against the North American Plate. It’s messy. It’s loud. And it’s constant.
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Real-time tracking: Where to look first
Don't wait for the local news. By the time they have a graphics package ready, the information is ten minutes old.
- USGS Latest Earthquakes Map: This is the gold standard. They have a real-time map that updates every few minutes. You can filter by "Last hour" or "Last 24 hours."
- EMSC (European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre): If you're outside the States, these folks are often faster. Their "LastQuake" app is surprisingly good because it uses crowdsourced data. Basically, if 500 people in Rome all open the app at once, the system knows something happened before the sensors even finish processing.
- Raspberry Shake: This is a cool, niche community of citizen scientists who have mini-seismographs in their homes. Sometimes they pick up local vibrations that the big government sensors ignore.
The "Ghost" Earthquakes
Sometimes you feel shaking and the USGS says... nothing. Total silence.
This happens way more than you'd think. It could be "frost quakes" (cryoseisms) if you're in a cold climate like Canada or the Northeast US. This is when groundwater freezes so fast it cracks the soil and rock with a loud boom. People swear it’s an earthquake. It’s not. It’s just physics being aggressive.
Then there’s human-induced activity. Fracking or wastewater injection has famously caused "swarms" in places like Oklahoma and Texas. These are real earthquakes, but they aren't always on the primary fault lines we learned about in middle school.
Understanding the "Did You Feel It?" Scale
The Richter scale is old school. Seismologists mostly use the Moment Magnitude Scale (Mw) now. But for you, the person standing in a kitchen watching the chandelier swing, the Modified Mercalli Intensity (MMI) scale is what actually matters.
- Level II: Felt only by a few people at rest. Like a dizzy spell.
- Level IV: Felt indoors by many. Dishes and windows rattle. Feels like a heavy truck striking the building.
- Level VI: Felt by everyone. Furniture moves. Minor plaster damage.
- Level IX: Universal panic. Buildings shift off foundations.
If you are searching "did an earthquake happen today" because your windows rattled, you were likely in a Level III or IV zone. It’s startling, but usually harmless for modern buildings.
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Why the "Big One" is a bit of a myth
We love to talk about the "Big One" hitting Los Angeles or the Cascadia Subduction Zone in the Pacific Northwest. While those are very real geological threats, earthquakes don't work on a schedule. There is no "overdue."
Dr. Lucy Jones, a leading seismologist, has spent years trying to get people to understand that earthquakes are random. A bunch of small quakes today doesn't necessarily mean a big one is coming tomorrow. Sometimes small quakes (foreshocks) precede a big event, but usually, they’re just... small quakes.
Earthquakes are basically the earth releasing stress. Think of it like a creaky wooden floor in an old house. It’s going to pop and groan as things settle.
What to do the next time the ground moves
Forget the doorway.
That "stand in a doorway" advice is ancient and actually dangerous in modern homes. Doorways aren't stronger than the rest of the house, and the door might swing shut and crush your fingers.
Drop, Cover, and Hold On. * Drop to your hands and knees.
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- Cover your head and neck with your arms. If there’s a sturdy table, crawl under it.
- Hold On to your shelter until the shaking stops.
If you are driving, pull over. Avoid overpasses. If you are in bed, stay there and put a pillow over your head. Most injuries in earthquakes aren't from collapsing buildings—they're from falling TVs, glass, and bookshelves.
Actionable Steps for the "Earthquake Anxious"
If you're constantly checking "did an earthquake happen today," it might be time to move from "checking" to "preparing." It helps the nerves.
- Check your surroundings: Is that heavy mirror above your headboard bolted to a stud? If not, move it.
- The "Shoes" Rule: Keep a pair of sturdy shoes and a flashlight right under your bed. If a quake happens at 3 AM, the floor will be covered in broken glass. You don't want to be barefoot.
- Digital Alerts: Turn on Wireless Emergency Alerts (WEA) on your phone. If you're in California, Oregon, or Washington, download the MyShake app. It can give you a few seconds of warning before the shaking starts. Those seconds are enough to get under a table.
- Water: You need one gallon per person per day. Keep at least three days' worth. The pipes are the first thing to break in a serious rumble.
Earthquakes are a part of living on a geologically active planet. They are terrifying because they are unpredictable, but they are also deeply documented. Keep an eye on the USGS feed, secure your heavy furniture, and remember that the vast majority of "shakes" are just the earth stretching its limbs.
Check the USGS Real-Time Map for the exact coordinates and magnitude of what you just felt. If it's not there yet, give it five minutes for the sensors to sync. Stay safe and keep those heavy items off the high shelves.
Next Steps for Safety:
- Identify your "safe spot" in every room of your house—usually under a sturdy desk or table.
- Secure top-heavy furniture like bookcases and wardrobes to wall studs using L-brackets or nylon straps.
- Assemble a basic "go-bag" with 72 hours of water, medications, and a portable power bank for your phone.
- Download a dedicated quake alert app to receive early warnings that can provide life-saving seconds of lead time.