QuakeIndex

Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist

M 1.9ml

Kansas

Yes. A magnitude 1.9 earthquake was recorded in Kansas, 56 km (35 mi) SSW of Wichita, KS, at 8:46 am CST on 22 February 2016 (14:46 UTC), 2.1 km deep.

56 km (35 mi) SSW of Wichita, KS

· 2.1 km deep · released about 23 lb of TNT

Felt it? Tell USGS Check my area
10 km30 km60 km120 km N Sumner County 13 kmHarper County 38 kmSedgwick County 51 kmGrant County 53 kmKingman County 56 kmKay County 66 kmCowley County 71 kmAlfalfa County 84 kmReno County 87 km
Distance rings around the epicentre, with the nearest towns at their true direction and later quakes as coloured dots. Not a shaking map — see the USGS ShakeMap for that.
When
Magnitude
M 1.9 (ml)
Depth
2.1 km below the surface
Felt
no reports yet
Nearest
Sumner County, 13 km E
Status
Reviewed by a seismologist

USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 3898 days ago

This was a minor earthquake. Quakes this small are rarely felt and do not cause damage.

At this magnitude and depth, people at rest would likely notice it out to about 21 km (13 mi) from the epicentre. Estimated from magnitude, depth and distance with the intensity equation USGS Did You Feel It? uses; felt reports, where there are any, are the measurement.

Likely felt in: Conway Springs 16 km, intensity II. Estimated for each town centre; each link is that town's own record.

How big was it?

This earthquake released about 23 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 2.9 would have released about 32 times as much.

  1. Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 660,000× the energy of this one
  2. Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 470,000× the energy of this one
  3. Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 42× the energy of this one
  4. This earthquake M 1.9 about 23 lb of TNT

Energy from the Gutenberg–Richter relation (log10E = 1.5M + 4.8), rounded to two figures; bar length is magnitude, which is already a logarithm of energy. Magnitudes of past earthquakes from the USGS catalogue.

For this area

No earthquake of M4 or more has been recorded within 50 km since our catalogue begins in 2016.

Before 2016, the USGS record since 1900 lists no earthquake of M5 or more within 50 km.

Since 2016: the QuakeIndex catalogue (US, M1.5+), built from the USGS FDSN event service. Before 2016: USGS ComCat, M5+ from 1900. Distances are between epicentres. This is the record, not a forecast.

Where

Epicentre 37.2488, -97.6430. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Nearby places

PlaceDistanceDirection from the epicentre
Sumner County, KS 13 km (8 mi) E earthquakes near Sumner County
Harper County, KS 38 km (24 mi) W earthquakes near Harper County
Sedgwick County, KS 51 km (31 mi) NNE earthquakes near Sedgwick County
Grant County, OK 53 km (33 mi) SSW earthquakes near Grant County
Kingman County, KS 56 km (35 mi) NW earthquakes near Kingman County
Kay County, OK 66 km (41 mi) SE earthquakes near Kay County

Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.

Aftershocks so far

59 earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.

  1. 2.5 2 km E of Anthony, Kansas
  2. 2.1 9 km SSE of Bluff City, Kansas
  3. 1.7 10 km SSE of Bluff City, Kansas
  4. 2.1 4 km SW of Bluff City, Kansas
  5. 2.6 1 km N of Manchester, Oklahoma
  6. 1.8 8 km NE of Anthony, Kansas
  7. 1.6 7 km SW of Danville, Kansas
  8. 1.7 11 km WNW of Caldwell, Kansas
  9. 1.6 9 km ENE of Bluff City, Kansas
  10. 1.8 6 km NW of Mayfield, Kansas
  11. 1.9 5 km ENE of Mayfield, Kansas
  12. 1.7 5 km ESE of Caldwell, Kansas
  13. 1.7 5 km NW of Mayfield, Kansas
  14. 1.9 6 km NW of Mayfield, Kansas
  15. 1.9 6 km NW of Mayfield, Kansas

Counted from the QuakeIndex database, which ingests the USGS feed every 30 seconds · as of . QuakeIndex does not forecast aftershocks. When USGS issues an operational aftershock forecast it appears on the USGS event page.

On USGS

QuakeIndex does not issue warnings. For earthquake early warning see ShakeAlert.