Sensors near the southern state’s Fort Lauderdale and Madison areas, close to Georgia, showed a water level rise from 41.59 feet to 41.77 feet in the latter before returning to normal minutes later.
Meanwhile, Fort Lauderdale saw its groundwater levels fall from 1.42 feet to 1.31 feet.
The USGS used the analogy of a glass of water shaking from a nearby vehicle to demonstrate the horrifying impact an earthquake can have thousands of miles away.
An official said: “Think of it as the ripples in a glass of water on a table when a truck drives by outside.”
The USGS explained that water levels in wells can change as seismic-waves expand.
The body said: “Water levels in wells respond to the seismic-wave induced expansion and contraction of the aquifer tapped by the well, in turn causing step or oscillatory fluid-pressure changes.”
Seismic waves are shown by upward and downward lines on seismographs – these are used to detect earthquakes around the globe.
The phenomena are called a “Hydrogeologic response” by the USGS – they explained that the horrifying earthquake in Alaska was not the first time this has been seen.
They declared: “Hydrogeologic responses to earthquakes have been known for decades, and have occurred both close to, and thousands of miles from earthquake epicentres.
“Water wells have become turbid, dry or begun flowing, discharge of springs and ground water to streams has increased and new springs have formed, and well and surface-water quality have become degraded as a result of earthquakes.
“Earthquakes affect our Earth’s intricate plumbing system—whether you live near the notoriously active San Andreas Fault in California, or far from active faults in Florida, an earthquake near or far can affect you and the water resources you depend on.”
An 8.5 magnitude earthquake in Alaska saw water-level changes in 716 wells across the United States back in 1964 – this demonstrates the unwieldily power of seismic waves.
Following a series of violent volcanic eruptions and earthquakes in Alaska and Asia, the United Nations warned that the Pacific Ring of Fire is “very active”.
More than half of the world’s active volcanoes above sea level encircle the Pacific Ocean, and about 90 percent of the world’s earthquakes occur in this zone, according to the USGS.
One man was killed and at least 11 people injured when the sudden eruption of Mount Kasatsu-Shirane in Japan rained down rocks on skiers at a mountain resort on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, a magnitude 7.9 earthquake struck the south-east of Chiniak, Alaska, on the same day, threatening to trigger a tsunami that was predicted to hit the entire US West Coast, Alaska, and Canada.