According to the Center for Seismovolcanic Information and Observation of the Azores (CIVISA), an earthquake measuring 1.9 on the Richter scale was felt this Friday on the island of Terceira.
According to CIVISA, the earthquake was felt at 19:01 local time (20:01 in Lisbon) and had an epicenter about 0.5 km southeast of Doze Ribeiras, Terceira Island.
“According to the information currently available, an earthquake with maximum intensity III (modified Mercalli scale) was felt in Doza Ribeiras and Santa Barbara (Angra do Heroismo municipality),” the source said.
This event “is part of the ongoing seismic-volcanic crisis on the island of Terceira since June 2022.”
On the Richter scale, earthquakes are classified by magnitude into micro (less than 2.0), very small (2.0-2.9), small (3.0-3.9), weak (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 more than 10).
The Modified Mercalli Scale measures “degree of intensity and corresponding description.”
At intensity III, considered weak, the shock is felt inside the house and hanging objects sway, feeling “a vibration similar to that caused by the passage of heavy vehicles,” the Portuguese Institute of the Sea and the Atmosphere (IPMA) said on its website. .