An earthquake with a magnitude of 2.6 on the Richter scale was felt today on Terceira island, in the Azores, without causing any personal or material damage, the Portuguese Sea and Atmosphere Institute (IPMA) said.
According to the IPMA statement, the quake was recorded at the Seismic Network stations in the Azores archipelago at 11:21 local time (12:21 in Lisbon) and the epicenter was located “near Serreta, in Terceira”.
“According to the information available so far, this earthquake did not cause any personal or material damage and was felt with a maximum intensity of III/IV (modified Mercalli scale) in S.Bárbara (Angra do Heroísmo),” reads the statement.
The earthquakes that have been recorded in Terceira are part of “the seismovolcanic crisis that has been ongoing in Terceira since June 2022”, according to the Azores Seismovolcanic Information and Surveillance Center (CIVISA).
According to the Richter scale, earthquakes are classified according to their magnitude as micro (less than 2.0), very small (2.0-2.9), small (3.0-3.9), slight (4.0-4.9), moderate (5.0-5.9), strong (6.0-6.9), large (7.0-7.9), important (8.0-8.9), exceptional (9.0-9.9) and extreme (when greater than 10).
The Modified Mercalli scale measures “degrees of intensity and their description”.
With an intensity of III, considered to be weak, the tremor is felt inside the house and hanging objects sway, with a “vibration similar to that caused by the passage of heavy vehicles”, describes the IPMA on its website.
At intensity IV, understood as moderate, parked cars sway; windows, doors and crockery shake; glass and crockery rattle or clink, according to the description.
