Earthquake · automatic estimate, may change
M 1.5ml
Earthquake near Reno, NV
No earthquake was likely felt in Reno in the 24 hours to 11:23 am PST (19:23 UTC). The last one was M 2.3, 7 km (4 mi) SW, at 11:07 pm PDT on 10 October 2026, estimated intensity II (weak) in town; 7 felt reports to USGS. Every earthquake near Reno
This page: a magnitude 1.5 earthquake was recorded 21 km (13 mi) west-northwest of Reno, NV, at 3:55 pm PST on 27 December 2020 (23:55 UTC), 14 km deep. The magnitude and location are an automatic first estimate and may change.
USGS: 7 km NNW of Verdi, California
17 km (11 mi) WNW of Reno, NV
- When
- 3:55 pm PST on 27 December 2020 ()
- Where
- 21 km (13 mi) west-northwest of Reno, NV · earthquakes near Reno
- Magnitude
- M 1.5 (ml)
- Depth
- 14 km below the surface
- Felt
- no reports yet
- Nearest
- Sierra County, 41 km W
- Nearest mapped fault
- Dog Valley fault, under 1 km from its surface trace — near is not the same as on
- Status
- Automatic — a machine’s first estimate, which may change
USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 2147 days ago
Earthquake alerts for Reno, NV
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This was a minor earthquake. Quakes this small are rarely felt and do not cause damage.
At this magnitude and depth it was probably too small to be felt, even directly above it. In Reno, 21 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: Verdi, Cold Springs, Mogul, Lemmon Valley, Golden Valley, Sun Valley.
How big was it?
This earthquake released about 5.4 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 2.5 would have released about 32 times as much.
- Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 2,800,000× the energy of this one
- Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 2,000,000× the energy of this one
- Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 180× the energy of this one
- This earthquake M 1.5 about 5.4 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 9 earthquakes of M5 or more within 50 km; the five largest:
- 6.0 Near Reno, Nevada · 23 km ESE of this epicentre
- 6.0 6 km WNW of Verdi, California · 5 km SW of this epicentre
- 5.9 9 km NW of Truckee, California · 28 km SW of this epicentre
- 5.6 5 km NE of Loyalton, California · 20 km NW of this epicentre
- 5.3 11 km N of Soda Springs, California · 35 km WSW 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 39.5830, -120.0465. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sierra County, CA | 41 km (25 mi) | W | earthquakes near Sierra County |
| Storey County, NV | 48 km (30 mi) | ESE | earthquakes near Storey County |
| Carson City, NV | 54 km (34 mi) | SSE | earthquakes near Carson City |
| Nevada County, CA | 70 km (43 mi) | WSW | earthquakes near Nevada County |
| Plumas County, CA | 81 km (50 mi) | NW | earthquakes near Plumas County |
| Placer County, CA | 82 km (51 mi) | SW | earthquakes near Placer County |
Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.
Aftershocks so far
56 earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.
- 2.5 0km NW of Lake Davis, CA
- 2.1 0km NE of Lake Davis, CA
- 2.2 1km WNW of Lake Davis, CA
- 2.2 0km WNW of Lake Davis, CA
- 2.4 12km NW of Truckee, CA
- 2.0 1km NW of Lake Davis, CA
- 1.5 15 km SSE of Sierraville, California
- 1.7 8 km SE of Dollar Point, California
- 1.5 16 km SSE of Sierraville, California
- 1.5 15 km SSE of Sierraville, California
- 2.2 19km NW of Truckee, CA
- 3.0 19km NW of Truckee, CA
- 4.7 19km NW of Truckee, CA
- 1.7 15 km SSE of Sierraville, California
- 2.7 20km NW of Truckee, CA
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.