Today in Earthquake History

Today's Earthquake Fact:
The Hawaiian Islands are the tops of gigantic volcanoes that formed above a hot spot in the Earth's interior. As the volcanoes grew, they were carried away from the hot spot as the Pacific Plate moves northwestward at about 3 1/2 inches per year.

Year at a Glance

February

Note: All earthquake dates are UTC, not local time.

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Year	Location	Magnitude	Comment

1812	New Madrid, Missouri	~7.4 - 8.0	One of the Largest Earthquakes in the United States. The largest historical earthquake in Missouri. This was the fourth earthquake of the 1811-1812 series. Several destructive shocks occurred on February 7, the last of which equaled or surpassed the magnitude of any previous event. The town of New Madrid was destroyed. At St. Louis, many houses were damaged severely and their chimneys were thrown down. The meizoseismal area was characterized by general ground warping, ejections, fissuring, severe landslides, and caving of stream banks.

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