Earthquakes in Esmeralda County, Nevada
The most recent earthquake of M2.5 or more near Esmeralda County was M 2.8, 34 km SE of Mina, Nevada, 47 km (29 mi) NNW of the centre of Esmeralda County, at 5:59 am PDT on 9 October 2026, 6 km deep. The estimated shaking at the centre of Esmeralda County was intensity II (weak), felt by some people at rest indoors. 8 smaller earthquakes have been recorded near Esmeralda County since.
No earthquake of M1.5 or more was recorded within 50 km (31 mi) of the centre of Esmeralda County in the last 24 hours.
- Last 24 hours
- 0
- Last 7 days
- 1
- Last 30 days
- 6 · an average 30 days here since 2016: 45
- Last 12 months
- 111 · largest M 3.8 on 25 May 2026
- Since 2016
- 5,979 earthquakes of M1.5 or more
- Largest since 2016
- M 6.5 on 15 May 2020, Monte Cristo Range, NV Earthquake
- Nearest mapped fault
- Lone Mountain fault, 18 km from the centre to its surface trace
Latest quake, 24 hours and 7 days: the QuakeIndex database, which reads USGS every 30 seconds, read at ; 30 days and 12 months: the QuakeIndex catalogue, counted to · earthquakes of M1.5 or more within 50 km (31 mi) of the centre of Esmeralda County · shaking is estimated for the centre with the intensity equation USGS Did You Feel It? uses
Typical QuakeIndex 33 / 100
1 quake of M1.5 or larger in the last 7 days within 50 km. Normal for here is 0 to 6 in a week.
Compared against Esmeralda County, Nevada's own 10 years · USGS catalogue · updated
If you felt one
- Was that an earthquake? — checks what was recorded near you in the last hour
- Report what you felt to USGS — reports go to USGS, not to us, and they are what produces the intensity maps
- Expect aftershocks, and be ready to Drop, Cover, and Hold On if you feel one; if you are in a damaged building, go outside and move away from it (Ready.gov, FEMA; what to do during and after an earthquake)
- Check the roads — Nevada Explorer — for Reno, Tahoe and the Sierra passes
QuakeIndex does not issue warnings or forecasts. For earthquake early warning see ShakeAlert and the MyShake app.
The last 30 days
Show these earthquakes on your own site: a free card with this strip and the latest quakes near Esmeralda County, Nevada, for a local news site, school or neighborhood page.
Live · last 7 days
Latest earthquakes within 50 km
None within 50 km in the latest snapshot we hold; the full 7 days load from USGS as this page opens.
Source USGS · snapshot of
The last 7 days on the map
Open the full map — zoom anywhere, or find your own location →
The centre is 37.779, -117.632, the Census internal point of Esmeralda County, Nevada from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Activity on this page is measured within 50 km of it — the dashed circle.
Largest on record nearby
The strongest shaking this record implies at the centre of Esmeralda County, Nevada is intensity V (moderate), from the M 6.5 of 2020, 47 km away. At that level nearly everyone notices; some objects fall and plaster can crack.
| Magnitude | When | Where | Shaking here (est.) |
|---|---|---|---|
| M 6.5 | Monte Cristo Range, NV Earthquake · felt by 11,961 | V · Moderate | |
| M 5.3 | 33 km SE of Mina, Nevada · felt by 215 | IV · Light | |
| M 5.1 | 31 km SE of Mina, Nevada · felt by 170 | III · Weak | |
| M 5.0 | 38 km ESE of Mina, Nevada · felt by 47 | III · Weak | |
| M 4.9 | 34 km SE of Mina, Nevada · felt by 39 | III · Weak | |
| M 4.8 | 36 km SE of Mina, Nevada · felt by 14 | III · Weak | |
| M 4.8 | 34 km SE of Mina, Nevada · felt by 51 | III · Weak | |
| M 4.7 | 34 km SE of Mina, Nevada · felt by 15 | III · Weak |
From the QuakeIndex catalogue, built from the USGS FDSN event service · within 50 km of the centre above. Shaking is an estimate for the centre from magnitude, depth and distance, with the intensity equation USGS Did You Feel It? uses (Atkinson & Wald, 2007), on the Modified Mercalli scale. Ground conditions change it locally; it is a description of the past, not a hazard rating.
Before 2016
The USGS record from 1900 to 2015 lists 10 earthquakes of M5 or more within 50 km of the centre of Esmeralda County, Nevada; the 8 largest:
- 6.1 Near Tonopah Junction, Nevada · 41 km NW of the centre
- 5.6 37 km N of Dyer, Nevada · 47 km WNW of the centre
- 5.5 Near Tonopah Junction, Nevada · 41 km NW of the centre
- 5.5 Near Tonopah Junction, Nevada · 41 km NW of the centre
- 5.5 30km WSW of Tonopah, NV · 20 km NNE of the centre
- 5.4 16 km NNW of Dyer, Nevada · 45 km W of the centre
- 5.3 47km NNE of Dixon Lane-Meadow Creek, CA · 50 km W of the centre
- 5.1 39 km N of Dyer, Nevada · 46 km NW of the centre
USGS ComCat, M5+ from 1900 to 2015. Epicentres of early earthquakes are estimates. This is the record, not a forecast.
Nearest mapped faults
- Lone Mountain fault, 18 km from the centre of Esmeralda County, Nevada to its surface trace
- Emigrant Peak fault, 24 km from the centre of Esmeralda County, Nevada to its surface trace
- McAfee Canyon fault, 31 km from the centre of Esmeralda County, Nevada to its surface trace
- Fish Lake Valley fault, 33 km from the centre of Esmeralda County, Nevada to its surface trace
USGS Quaternary Fault and Fold Database, within 50 km. Near is not the same as on, and faults with no surface trace are not in it.
Town pages near Esmeralda County, Nevada
Tonopah 48 km · 223 M2.5+ named after it
Each town page lists every M1.5+ earthquake within 30 km since 2016 and the ones USGS named after it. Town names: GeoNames (CC BY 4.0).
Be ready
Earthquakes cannot be predicted, here or anywhere, so the useful step is the one taken beforehand. The advice below is from the agencies responsible for it.
- Ready.gov: earthquakes (FEMA) — what to do before, during and after, including Drop, Cover, and Hold On
- Build a kit (FEMA) — water, food and supplies for several days; our summary
- USGS: preparedness — the hazard behind the advice, from the agency that records every quake on this page
- The Great ShakeOut — the yearly earthquake drill, with material for homes, schools and workplaces