100+ ‘Mysterious Earthquakes’ Detected Near US Nuclear Testing Site
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A swarm of more than 120 earthquakes rattled a remote stretch of central Nevada this week near a cluster of sensitive U.S. military and nuclear-related facilities.
At least 127 tremors have been recorded since Saturday in the highly restricted region surrounding the Tonopah Test Range, sometimes referred to as “Area 52.” The most recent quake was detected on Wednesday.
The earthquakes ranged in magnitude from 3.3 down to roughly 1.4 and struck near the desert installation outside the small town of Tonopah.
The range is not primarily used for nuclear detonations, but it has long been connected to America’s nuclear weapons programs.
Officials have used the facility to test how nuclear weapons would be delivered, including experiments where aircraft drop non-nuclear versions of bombs to study their performance. The range has also hosted missile and aircraft testing, and during the Cold War, it was used in experiments where mock nuclear bombs were dropped to simulate real weapons deployments.
The recent earthquake swarm occurred outside the nearby Nevada National Security Site, which remains active in the nation’s nuclear weapons program.
Scientists say the flurry of quakes is most likely tied to the region’s natural geology.