QuakeIndex

Fault · Nevada

Wassuk Range fault

116 kmlong (72 mi), as mapped
0.2–1 mm/yrhow fast it slips
< 15,000 yearssince it last broke the surface
65quakes of M2.5+ within 10 km since 2016

In plain English

The two sides move 0.2 to 1 mm a year — 2 to 10 cm every century.

Its most recent surface rupture is younger than 15,000 years.

The largest earthquake recorded near it was M 6.3 in 1934 (The 1934 Excelsior Mountains, Nevada Earthquake) — about 89,000 times the energy of an M3.0, the size people start to feel. It released about 43 kilotons of TNT.

This week vs. its last ten years

0/100

quiet

0 quakes of M1.5+ within 5 km of the trace in the last 7 days — busier than 0% of weeks since 2016. A normal week: 0–0.

Computed from the USGS catalogue · a description of the past, not a forecast · method

San Andreas faultWhite Mountains faultDixie Valley faultFish Lake Valley faultBenton Spring faultSmith Valley faultCarson lineamentRainbow Mountain faultAntelope Valley faultEast Carson Valley faultHot Springs Mountains faultSand Springs Range faultHuntoon Valley fault systemEmigrant Peak faultSilver Lake faultFairview faultMonte Cristo Valley faultHot Springs faultSagouse faultGabbs Valley faultHartley Springs faultMono Lake faultWest Gate faultRobinson Creek faultEastgate faultWest Walker River faultIndian Head faultRattlesnake Flat faultLouderback Mountains faultNorthern Virginia Range fault M 6.3 · 1934 · The 1934 Excelsior Mountains, Nevada Earthquake
The Wassuk Range fault as mapped at the surface (glowing), with the other mapped faults nearby, 65 of the M2.5+ earthquakes within 10 km of it since 2016 (dots), and the epicentres of the large historic earthquakes recorded near it (rings). Traces: USGS Quaternary Fault and Fold Database. Historic epicentres are estimates.

Every year since 2016

Earthquakes of M2.5+ with an epicentre within 10 km of the mapped trace. Near is not the same as on: some will have slipped on neighbouring faults.

The big ones recorded near it

  1. M 6.3 The 1934 Excelsior Mountains, Nevada Earthquake
    January 30, 1934 · epicentre 20 km from the trace
  2. M 4.5 3 km W of Walker Lake, Nevada
    July 7, 2016 · epicentre 3 km from the trace
  3. M 4.3 3 km W of Walker Lake, Nevada
    July 7, 2016 · epicentre 3 km from the trace
  4. M 4.1 2 km WNW of Walker Lake, Nevada
    March 22, 2016 · epicentre 2 km from the trace

Before 1973 from the USGS ComCat historical catalogue (within 25 km; epicentres of old earthquakes are estimates). Since 2016, M4+ within 10 km.

Most recent near it

  1. M 3.5 16 km NE of Yerington, Nevada
    2026-07-22 · 10 km from the trace
  2. M 2.6 2 km SSW of Schurz, Nevada
    2026-05-11 · 0 km from the trace
  3. M 2.6 15 km ENE of Yerington, Nevada
    2026-05-03 · 7 km from the trace
  4. M 2.8 10 km SE of Schurz, Nevada
    2025-09-08 · 6 km from the trace
  5. M 2.7 17 km S of Schurz, Nevada
    2025-05-26 · 5 km from the trace
  6. M 2.8 34 km SSE of Hawthorne, Nevada
    2025-05-10 · 10 km from the trace

Neighbouring faults

Fault trace, slip rate and age: USGS Quaternary Fault and Fold Database (public domain), simplified for the web. Earthquakes: USGS ComCat. QuakeIndex does not forecast earthquakes; a fault's history describes the past. For early warning use ShakeAlert.