Why you felt (or didn't feel) the earthquake

AMHERST, Mass. (WWLP) - It didn’t last long, but Tuesday’s earthquake surely left a lasting impression on those who felt the vibrations.

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) says at 7:12pm Tuesday night, a 4.0 earthquake ruptured three miles below the surface of the earth near Waterboro, Maine.

The USGS says tremors can be felt more than 60 miles from the epicenter of the earthquake. Santa Barbara Pabon of Amherst told 22News she didn’t know about it until after it happened.

“I was at home with the kids relaxing and I didn’t feel a thing,” said Pabon, who found out about it through Facebook.

Amherst College Professor of Geology, Tekla Harms, says many things come into play when determining who is going to feel this release of energy. Harms told 22News the magnitude of the quake is just one of many factors, the nature of the material on the surface of the ground can respond differently to the vibrations.

“So the various materials that you might be standing on or that the building you are in, or might be standing on, will respond to that passage of earthquake energy differently,” said Harms inside her Amherst office Wednesday morning. “If your house is like the equivalent of Jell-O, it’s going to shake more than if your house is on the geologic equivalent of a brick.”

Harms says the geology of New England varies and can range from bedrock surfaces to aggregate unconsolidated material like soil or sand. She says the depth of the earthquake can also affect tremors as the further the rupture is from the surface, the weaker the vibrations are once it reaches the landscape.

According to the USGS, the largest known earthquake in Massachusetts was a 5.8 magnitude quake northeast of Boston in 1755.