QuakeIndex

Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist

M 2.3md

Missouri

Yes. A magnitude 2.3 earthquake was recorded in Missouri, 90 km (56 mi) ENE of Springfield, MO, at 10:39 pm CDT on 12 May 2023 (03:39 UTC), less than 1 km deep. 1 person has reported feeling it to USGS.

90 km (56 mi) ENE of Springfield, MO

· 0.0 km deep · released about 82 lb of TNT

10 km30 km60 km120 km N Laclede County 14 kmPulaski County 29 kmWright County 41 kmCamden County 52 kmDallas County 53 kmTexas County 55 kmWebster County 55 kmPhelps County 63 kmMiller County 65 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
Missouri today
every earthquake in Missouri in the last 24 hours
Magnitude
M 2.3 (md)
Depth
0.0 km below the surface
Felt
1 report · strongest reported intensity II
Nearest
Laclede County, 14 km WNW
Status
Reviewed by a seismologist

USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 1208 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 37 km (23 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.

Earthquakes near other towns within 30 km: Lebanon, Richland, Fort Leonard Wood.

How big was it?

This earthquake released about 82 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 3.3 would have released about 32 times as much.

  1. Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 180,000× the energy of this one
  2. Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 130,000× the energy of this one
  3. Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 12× the energy of this one
  4. This earthquake M 2.3 about 82 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 37.6345, -92.4395. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Nearby places

PlaceDistanceDirection from the epicentre
Laclede County, MO 14 km (9 mi) WNW earthquakes near Laclede County
Pulaski County, MO 29 km (18 mi) NE earthquakes near Pulaski County
Wright County, MO 41 km (25 mi) S earthquakes near Wright County
Camden County, MO 52 km (32 mi) NNW earthquakes near Camden County
Dallas County, MO 53 km (33 mi) W earthquakes near Dallas County
Texas County, MO 55 km (34 mi) SE earthquakes near Texas County

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

Aftershocks so far

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

  1. 2.4 14 km SSE of Richland, Missouri
  2. 2.6 3 km E of Hartville, Missouri

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.