QuakeIndex

Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist

M 2.0ml

35 km E of Schurz, Nevada

Yes. A magnitude 2.0 earthquake was recorded 35 km E of Schurz, Nevada, at 2:40 pm PDT on 13 October 2023 (21:40 UTC), 7.6 km deep.

· 7.6 km deep · released about 30 lb of TNT

10 km30 km60 km120 km N Mineral County 54 kmChurchill County 61 kmLyon County 68 kmDouglas County 104 kmStorey County 108 kmCarson City 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
Magnitude
M 2.0 (ml)
Depth
7.6 km below the surface
Felt
no reports yet
Nearest
Mineral County, 54 km S
Nearest mapped fault
Hot Springs fault, 15 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 1126 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 14 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 30 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 3.0 would have released about 32 times as much.

  1. Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 500,000× the energy of this one
  2. Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 350,000× the energy of this one
  3. Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 32× the energy of this one
  4. This earthquake M 2.0 about 30 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 31 earthquakes of M5 or more within 50 km; the five largest:

  1. 7.1 The 1954 Fairview Peak, Nevada Earthquake · 42 km ENE of this epicentre
  2. 6.5 17 km ESE of Fallon Station, Nevada · 43 km NNW of this epicentre
  3. 6.2 The 1954 Rainbow Mountain, Nevada Earthquake · 49 km NNW of this epicentre
  4. 5.9 21 km SSE of Fallon Station, Nevada · 32 km NNW of this epicentre
  5. 5.8 48 km NNW of Gabbs, Nevada · 40 km NE 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 38.9984, -118.4094. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Nearby places

PlaceDistanceDirection from the epicentre
Mineral County, NV 54 km (33 mi) S earthquakes near Mineral County
Churchill County, NV 61 km (38 mi) NNE earthquakes near Churchill County
Lyon County, NV 68 km (42 mi) W earthquakes near Lyon County
Douglas County, NV 104 km (65 mi) W earthquakes near Douglas County
Storey County, NV 108 km (67 mi) WNW earthquakes near Storey County
Carson City, NV 117 km (73 mi) W earthquakes near Carson City

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.

  1. 1.6 16 km NNE of Hawthorne, Nevada
  2. 1.7 17 km ENE of Walker Lake, Nevada
  3. 2.9 17 km ENE of Walker Lake, Nevada
  4. 2.3 17 km ENE of Walker Lake, Nevada
  5. 2.1 17 km E of Walker Lake, Nevada
  6. 4.3 16 km ENE of Walker Lake, Nevada
  7. 2.1 16 km E of Walker Lake, Nevada
  8. 3.3 17 km E of Walker Lake, Nevada
  9. 1.9 17 km E of Walker Lake, Nevada
  10. 1.8 17 km E of Walker Lake, Nevada
  11. 3.0 17 km ENE of Walker Lake, Nevada
  12. 1.6 18 km NNE of Hawthorne, Nevada
  13. 1.5 16 km N of Walker Lake, Nevada
  14. 2.1 16 km ENE of Walker Lake, Nevada
  15. 1.6 17 km E of Walker Lake, 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.