An earthquake swarm has struck Nevada in the same location where the earth has been slowly breaking apart has unleashed hundreds of tremors for several weeks.
Since Sunday, the US Geological Survey has detected 19 minor earthquakes near Silver Springs, roughly 40 miles east of Reno.
Five of those earthquakes struck the area on Monday, with the largest ones registering at 2.5 in magnitude.
However, since April 20, monitoring stations have picked up more than 200 earthquakes, all centered in the same area of Nevada, including a significant magnitude 5.2 quake on May 1 which was felt across the state and in California.
The epicenter of this month-long swarm lies in the Basin and Range Province, a vast region stretching across much of the western US.
The Earth’s crust in this region has gradually stretched and thinned, creating frequent faulting and seismic activity.
As the crust pulls apart, fractures known as faults form, and movement along these faults produces earthquakes.
Silver Springs is also located in the Walker Lane seismic zone, a highly active area where tectonic plates pull apart land, creating numerous strike-slip faults.
US Geological Survey has detected over 200 earthquakes in the same region of western Nevada over the last three weeks
The seismic activity kicked has been centered near Silver Springs, Nevada, which is in a seismically active part of the western US
The majority of the tremors have been weaker than 2.0 in magnitude, meaning it was unlikely they were felt by many people at surface level.
However, three of the earthquakes over the last three weeks were sizable disturbances, surpassing 4.0 in magnitude.
The first of these larger quakes struck on April 22, when a magnitude 4.8 seismic event struck less than 40 miles away from Carson City at 1.23pm ET.
The next two significant events struck less than two minutes apart on May 1 at 4.15am and 4.17am. A magnitude 4.3 quake struck first, followed immediately by a powerful magnitude 5.2 earthquake just 12 miles south of Silver Springs.
Since that time, 79 more tremors have been detected in the area just south of Silver Springs and the Lahontan Reservoir.
Earthquake swarms in the Silver Springs region can be caused by several factors, but the most common reason is movement along faults, which are giant cracks in the Earth’s crust where blocks of rock grind past each other – causing stress to form.
This stress builds up in the crust and suddenly releases bursts of energy, it creates earthquakes. Another cause can be regional tectonic activity.
Since Nevada sits in an area where the Earth’s crust is stretching and pulling apart, this stretching creates frequent faulting and seismic activity.
A 6.5-magnitude earthquake struck Nevada in 2020 (Pictured), which was likely caused by the Basin and Ridge Province cracking and stretching
The magnitude 5.2 earthquake on May 1 sent shockwaves nearly 200 miles towards the California capital of Sacramento
A 6.5-magnitude earthquake struck Nevada in 2020, which was likely caused by the Basin and Ridge Province cracking and stretching. The latest seismic activity was detected in the same region.
In some cases, aftershocks can occur after a larger earthquake, producing a series of smaller quakes over days or weeks.
Occasionally, human activity can trigger earthquakes, such as geothermal energy operations, mining or underground fluid injection. However, most earthquakes in Nevada are naturally occurring.
Although there have been no reports of injuries in any of the recent quakes, thousands of locals in the Nevada area have felt significant shaking, which has been strong enough to knock groceries off store shelves.
‘It’s the same area that’s been rocking us the past week. It’s not stopping; I fear volcanic activity,’ one person said after the swarm on April 22.
‘Our house shook pretty good. It lasted longer than most do,’ another person posted on Facebook after the magnitude 4.8 quake struck.
