According to the organisation, the earthquake was recorded at 6:14pm local time (7:14pm BST) and its epicentre was about seven kilometres northeast of Rosais, on the island of São Jorge.

“According to the information available at the moment, the earthquake was felt with a maximum intensity of IV on the Modified Mercalli scale in the parishes of Rosais and Velas,” the centre stated in a press release.

CIVISA said the event is part of the “seismovolcanic crisis ongoing around São Jorge Island since March of 2022.”

About 22 events were recorded between midnight and 10pm on Tuesday, one of which was felt.

The seismovolcanic activity that has been recorded in São Jorge since the 19th of March 2022 “continues above normal levels.”

“To this moment, around 57 579 low magnitude tectonic events have been recorded,” CIVISA highlighted.

The most energetic earthquake of this crisis occurred on the 29th of March 2022, at 9:56pm Azores time, whose epicentre was about two kilometres south-southwest of Velas and had a magnitude of 3.8.

“Up until now 351 earthquakes that were felt by the population have been identified,” they stated.

Following the Richter scale, earthquakes are classified by their magnitude: micro (>2.0), very small (2.0-2.9), small (3.0-3.9), light (4.0-4.9), moderate (5.0-5.9), strong (6.0-6.9), large (7.0-7.9), important (8.0-8.9), exceptional (9.0-9.9) and extreme (<10).

The Modified Mercalli scale, meanwhile, measures the “degree of intensity and its respective description.” In an intensity IV earthquake, considered “Moderate,” “parked cars sway,” the “windows, doors and dishes shake” and “glasses and dishes rattle.”