Possible experimental explosion recorded off Florida coast
A possible experimental explosion has been recorded off Florida’s Atlantic coast, according to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). It comes less than two weeks after the U.S. Navy carried out ship shock trials in the region.
The magnitude 3.9 seismic event was recorded at 1:12 p.m. local time Tuesday, about 106 miles east-northeast of Flagler Beach. USGS data placed it at the surface.
“The recorded ground motions from this event are more typical of an explosion than a naturally occurring earthquake,” the USGS said.
The USGS did not identify the source of Tuesday’s event but noted that the Navy has previously conducted Full Ship Shock Trials in the region.
A similar magnitude 3.9 event was recorded off Florida on July 16. The Navy confirmed that the future USS Ted Stevens had completed the first of two scheduled tests as part of the certification process for the DDG 51 Flight III program.
The trials use live explosives to determine whether a ship can withstand the shock of an attack and continue operating in a simulated combat environment.
The Navy did not immediately confirm whether Tuesday’s event was the second scheduled test involving the USS Ted Stevens.
Thursday’s event was the tenth classified as an experimental explosion in the region since 2016, according to USGS data.
Explosions can register as earthquakes because part of the blast’s energy travels through the ground or seabed as seismic waves. Seismometers detect those waves and calculate a magnitude based on their strength, although their patterns can differ from those produced when faults move.
A similar event was recorded on May 28, when the explosion of a New Glenn rocket operated by Blue Origin at Cape Canaveral registered as a magnitude 2.5 earthquake.
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