QuakeIndex

Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist

M 2.2ml

28 km N of Wisdom, Montana

Yes. A magnitude 2.2 earthquake was recorded 28 km N of Wisdom, Montana, at 11:25 pm MDT on 16 May 2022 (05:25 UTC), 11 km deep.

· 11 km deep · released about 69 lb of TNT

Felt it? Tell USGS Check my area
10 km30 km60 km120 km N Deer Lodge County 37 kmRavalli County 52 kmGranite County 58 kmSilver Bow County 65 kmBeaverhead County 95 kmLemhi County 109 kmJefferson County 114 kmPowell County 116 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
Montana today
every earthquake in Montana in the last 24 hours
Magnitude
M 2.2 (ml)
Depth
11 km below the surface
Felt
no reports yet
Nearest
Deer Lodge County, 37 km NE
Status
Reviewed by a seismologist

USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 1639 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 15 km (9 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.

How big was it?

This earthquake released about 69 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 3.2 would have released about 32 times as much.

  1. Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 220,000× the energy of this one
  2. Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 150,000× the energy of this one
  3. Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 14× the energy of this one
  4. This earthquake M 2.2 about 69 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 45.8725, -113.4950. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Nearby places

PlaceDistanceDirection from the epicentre
Deer Lodge County, MT 37 km (23 mi) NE earthquakes near Deer Lodge County
Ravalli County, MT 52 km (33 mi) WNW earthquakes near Ravalli County
Granite County, MT 58 km (36 mi) N earthquakes near Granite County
Silver Bow County, MT 65 km (40 mi) E earthquakes near Silver Bow County
Beaverhead County, MT 95 km (59 mi) SSE earthquakes near Beaverhead County
Lemhi County, ID 109 km (68 mi) SSW earthquakes near Lemhi County

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

Aftershocks so far

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

  1. 2.7 10 km WNW of Wisdom, Montana
  2. 1.6 32 km SSW of Anaconda, Montana
  3. 2.4 7 km W of Wisdom, Montana
  4. 1.9 6 km NW of Wisdom, Montana
  5. 1.6 4 km WSW of Wisdom, Montana
  6. 1.9 8 km WNW of Wisdom, Montana
  7. 3.4 12 km WNW of Wisdom, Montana
  8. 2.0 10 km WNW of Wisdom, Montana
  9. 1.8 21 km NNW of Wisdom, Montana
  10. 1.9 21 km NNW of Wisdom, Montana
  11. 1.7 22 km NNW of Wisdom, Montana
  12. 1.7 22 km NNW of Wisdom, Montana
  13. 1.6 22 km NNW of Wisdom, Montana
  14. 1.8 21 km NNW of Wisdom, Montana
  15. 1.6 12 km WNW of Wisdom, Montana

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.