The East Coast's 'historic' earthquake: 6 interesting facts

The rare temblor that rattled Virginia on Tuesday had geologists dusting off their history books — while Californians snickered

The Washington Monument
(Image credit: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

On Tuesday, a rare 5.8-magnitude earthquake spooked the East Coast; while its epicenter was in rural Virginia, it was felt as widely as Georgia, New York, Ohio, and even Canada. (Earlier in the day, Colorado also experienced its biggest temblor in more than 40 years, a smaller 5.3-magnitude quake near the New Mexico border.) Although much less powerful than the temblors that frequently shake the West Coast, the Virginia quake "was an historic earthquake for the East Coast," says Columbia University seismologist Lynn Sykes. Here, six compelling facts about the East Coast's biggest earthquake in 67 years:

1. Temblors shook George Washington's Virginia, too

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