Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist
M 1.9ml
Earthquake near Missoula, MT
No earthquake was likely felt in Missoula in the 24 hours to 5:22 pm MST (00:22 UTC). The last one was M 3.8, 76 km (47 mi) NE, at 4:46 am MDT on 5 July 2024, estimated intensity II (weak) in town; 131 felt reports to USGS. Every earthquake near Missoula
This page: a magnitude 1.9 earthquake was recorded 27 km (17 mi) south-southwest of Missoula, MT, at 7:26 pm MDT on 20 April 2023 (01:26 UTC), 7.2 km deep.
USGS: Idaho-Montana border region
27 km (17 mi) S of Missoula, MT
- When
- 7:26 pm MDT on 20 April 2023 ()
- Where
- 27 km (17 mi) south-southwest of Missoula, MT · earthquakes near Missoula
- Magnitude
- M 1.9 (ml)
- Depth
- 7.2 km below the surface
- Felt
- no reports yet
- Nearest
- Missoula County, 46 km NNE
- Nearest mapped fault
- Bitterroot fault, 4 km from its surface trace — near is not the same as on
- Status
- Reviewed by a seismologist
USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 1300 days ago
Earthquake alerts for Missoula, MT
Get a notification in this browser when USGS records an earthquake near Missoula, MT. No account or email needed.
Alerts are on for .
Not a warning. An alert comes after USGS publishes a quake, usually minutes after the shaking. For early warning use ShakeAlert, through your phone's Wireless Emergency Alerts or the MyShake app.
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 13 km (8 mi) from the epicentre. In Missoula, 27 km away, the estimate is intensity II (weak). 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.
Earthquakes near other towns within 30 km: Stevensville, Lolo, Orchard Homes, East Missoula.
How big was it?
This earthquake released about 25 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.
- Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 620,000× the energy of this one
- Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 440,000× the energy of this one
- Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 39× the energy of this one
- This earthquake M 1.9 about 25 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.
Where
Epicentre 46.6332, -114.0828. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Missoula County, MT | 46 km (29 mi) | NNE | earthquakes near Missoula County |
| Granite County, MT | 57 km (35 mi) | ESE | earthquakes near Granite County |
| Ravalli County, MT | 62 km (38 mi) | S | earthquakes near Ravalli County |
| Powell County, MT | 91 km (56 mi) | ENE | earthquakes near Powell County |
| Deer Lodge County, MT | 94 km (58 mi) | SE | earthquakes near Deer Lodge County |
| Mineral County, MT | 94 km (58 mi) | NW | earthquakes near Mineral County |
Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.
Aftershocks so far
12 earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.
- 1.4 4 km SSE of Alberton, Montana
- 1.5 6 km S of Frenchtown, Montana
- 1.7 6 km S of Frenchtown, Montana
- 1.9 6 km S of Huson, Montana
- 1.9 3 km SSW of Alberton, Montana
- 1.7 4 km WNW of Wye, Montana
- 1.7 4 km SSW of Alberton, Montana
- 2.1 3 km S of Alberton, Montana
- 2.2 1 km SE of Alberton, Montana
- 1.8 2 km S of Turah, Montana
- 1.8 1 km SE of Alberton, Montana
- 2.2 Idaho-Montana border region
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
- The official USGS event page — the source of record for every value above
- Did you feel it? Report it to USGS — reports go to USGS, not to us
- ShakeMap for this event, when USGS has produced one
QuakeIndex does not issue warnings. For earthquake early warning see ShakeAlert.