An ‘experimental explosion’ has been detected off the coast of Florida, nearly two weeks after a similar event occurred.
The US Geological Survey detected a 3.9 magnitude earthquake east of Ponce Inlet, just south of Daytona Beach, on Tuesday.
The event was listed with a depth of zero feet, indicating the seismic source was at or very near the surface, a characteristic more consistent with an explosion than a typical tectonic earthquake.
The location is about 20 miles from where another event was recorded on July 16, an area where the US Navy is known to conduct Full Ship Shock Trials (FSST).
The Navy periodically conducts these controlled underwater detonations to test how new or upgraded warships, like aircraft carriers or combat ships, withstand battle-like explosions near mines or torpedoes.
A Navy spokesperson said after the July 16 event that the future USS Ted Stevens (DDG 128) had successfully completed the first of two planned Full Ship Shock Trials, part of the certification process for the Navy’s DDG 51 Flight III destroyer program.
The spokesperson added that the testing was the first two scheduled test events for FSST as part of the certification process for the Future USS Ted Stevens (DDG-128) under the DDG 51 Flight III Program.
In 2021, a similar event was also detected off the coast of Ponce Inlet when the US Navy set off a test explosion near its new aircraft carrier, the USS Gerald R Ford.
The US Geological Survey detected a 3.9 magnitude earthquake east of Ponce Inlet, just south of Daytona Beach, on Tuesday
While Tuesday’s event may have been planned, the public is still in shock after seeing it register on the USGS site.
One X user posted: ‘What the hell is going on? This is the second 3.9 magnitude “experimental explosion” earthquake off northeast Florida in the last two weeks. Same spot, same magnitude.’
Another user highlighted that no explanation has been attached to the USGS listing.
This is a developing story… More updates to come.
