First an earthquake. Next is Monday’s eclipse. But have no fear, John Mutter – professor of Earth and environmental sciences at Columbia University – says it’s not a “premonition of bad things to come."

He said Friday's 4.8 magnitude earthquake shook up quite the reaction in him.

"I was... as baffled as everybody else, for a little while, even though seismology's my business," Mutter laughed.

The professor said he was on the university's main campus when the earthquake happened and said the movement was "notable" and "very well felt."

"If you're in a high building, you're likely to feel it more," Mutter said. "Earthquakes of that sort of magnitude are quite rare."

Mutter said much smaller earthquakes happen often. However, he said they're so small and so deep that we may not feel them.

But is there a way to predict them?

"You don't... I mean just think of it, has any earthquake ever been predicted? The answer is no," Mutter said.

According to Mutter, many more aftershocks are taking place than we may even realize or feel – but they are only 1 or 2 magnitude events.