QuakeIndex

Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist

M 2.5ml

Earthquake near Beatty, NV

No earthquake was likely felt in Beatty in the 24 hours to 12:47 am PST (08:47 UTC). The last one was M 2.6, 17 km (11 mi) SSW, at 2:01 pm PDT on 28 August 2026, estimated intensity II (weak) in town. Every earthquake near Beatty

This page: a magnitude 2.5 earthquake was recorded 47 km (30 mi) east-northeast of Beatty, NV, at 8:37 pm PST on 26 December 2020 (04:37 UTC), 9.5 km deep. 1 person has reported feeling it to USGS.

USGS: 47 km ENE of Beatty, Nevada

8:37 pm PST, Dec 26, 2020 · · 9.5 km deep · released about 170 lb of TNT

Every earthquake near Beatty Felt it? Tell USGS Check my area
10 km30 km60 km120 km N Nye County 94 kmInyo County 117 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
8:37 pm PST on 26 December 2020 ()
Where
47 km (30 mi) east-northeast of Beatty, NV · earthquakes near Beatty
Magnitude
M 2.5 (ml)
Depth
9.5 km below the surface
Felt
1 report · strongest reported intensity III
Nearest
Nye County, 94 km N
Status
Reviewed by a seismologist

USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 2077 days ago

This was a small earthquake. Shaking like this is often felt indoors nearby and very rarely causes damage.

At this magnitude and depth, people at rest would likely notice it out to about 20 km (12 mi) from the epicentre. In Beatty, 47 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.

How big was it?

This earthquake released about 170 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 3.5 would have released about 32 times as much.

  1. Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 89,000× the energy of this one
  2. Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 63,000× the energy of this one
  3. Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 5.6× the energy of this one
  4. This earthquake M 2.5 about 170 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 lists 143 earthquakes of M5 or more within 50 km; the five largest:

  1. 6.4 52 km NE of Beatty, Nevada · 20 km NNW of this epicentre
  2. 6.3 46 km NNE of Beatty, Nevada · 22 km NW of this epicentre
  3. 6.3 51 km NNE of Beatty, Nevada · 24 km NW of this epicentre
  4. 6.2 53 km NE of Beatty, Nevada · 17 km NNW of this epicentre
  5. 6.2 57 km NE of Beatty, Nevada · 18 km N of this epicentre

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 37.1333, -116.3043. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Nearby places

PlaceDistanceDirection from the epicentre
Nye County, NV 94 km (58 mi) N earthquakes near Nye County
Inyo County, CA 117 km (72 mi) WSW earthquakes near Inyo County
Esmeralda County, NV 137 km (85 mi) WNW earthquakes near Esmeralda County
Clark County, NV 154 km (96 mi) SE earthquakes near Clark County

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

Aftershocks so far

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

  1. 1.5 59 km NE of Beatty, Nevada
  2. 2.1 35 km ENE of Beatty, Nevada
  3. 2.7 47 km SSW of Rachel, Nevada
  4. 1.5 56 km NW of Indian Springs, Nevada
  5. 1.6 45 km ESE of Beatty, Nevada
  6. 1.5 45 km ESE of Beatty, Nevada
  7. 1.9 47 km ESE of Beatty, Nevada
  8. 1.9 16 km N of Beatty, Nevada
  9. 2.3 55 km ENE of Beatty, Nevada
  10. 1.5 28 km SW of Rachel, Nevada
  11. 1.9 28 km SW of Rachel, Nevada
  12. 1.7 60 km ENE of Beatty, Nevada
  13. 1.5 47 km ESE of Beatty, Nevada
  14. 2.2 50 km ENE of Beatty, Nevada
  15. 1.7 13 km N of Beatty, Nevada

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.