Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist
M 3.2ml
Earthquake near Gardendale, TX
USGS: 14 km ENE of Gardendale, Texas
13 km (8 mi) WNW of Midland, TX
- When
- 2:56 pm CST on 28 February 2021 ()
- Where
- 14 km (9 mi) ENE of Gardendale, TX · earthquakes near Gardendale
- Magnitude
- M 3.2 (ml)
- Depth
- 8.8 km below the surface
- Felt
- 21 reports · strongest reported intensity III
- Nearest
- Midland County, 36 km SE
- Status
- Reviewed by a seismologist
USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 1968 days ago
A magnitude 3.2 earthquake was recorded 14 km (9 mi) ENE of Gardendale, TX, at 2:56 pm CST on 28 February 2021 (20:56 UTC). 21 people have reported feeling it to USGS. This was a small earthquake. Shaking like this is often felt indoors nearby and very rarely causes damage.
Earthquakes near other towns within 30 km: Midland, Odessa.
How big was it?
This earthquake released about 1,900 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 4.2 would have released about 32 times as much.
- Northridge, California 1994 M 6.7 180,000× the energy of this one
- Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 7,900× the energy of this one
- Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 5,600× the energy of this one
- This earthquake M 3.2 about 1,900 lb of TNT
- Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 this one released 2× more
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
The largest earthquake within 50 km since 2016 was M 4.0 on 2020-12-31 — about 16 times the energy of this one.
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 32.0682, -102.2414. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Midland County, TX | 36 km (22 mi) | SE | earthquakes near Midland County |
| Ector County, TX | 36 km (23 mi) | SW | earthquakes near Ector County |
| Martin County, TX | 38 km (23 mi) | NE | earthquakes near Martin County |
| Andrews County, TX | 46 km (29 mi) | NW | earthquakes near Andrews County |
| Glasscock County, TX | 71 km (44 mi) | ESE | earthquakes near Glasscock County |
| Crane County, TX | 75 km (47 mi) | SSW | earthquakes near Crane County |
Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.
Aftershocks so far
59 earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.
- 2.3 15 km NNW of Midland, Texas
- 2.1 15 km NNW of Midland, Texas
- 1.9 16 km NNW of Midland, Texas
- 2.4 9 km NNE of Odessa, Texas
- 1.5 9 km SSE of Gardendale, Texas
- 2.2 14 km NNW of Midland, Texas
- 1.5 western Texas
- 2.0 13 km NNW of Midland, Texas
- 2.4 15 km NNW of Midland, Texas
- 2.5 7 km ESE of Gardendale, Texas
- 2.0 21 km SE of Midland, Texas
- 2.0 15 km NNW of Midland, Texas
- 2.0 15 km NNW of Midland, Texas
- 1.7 30 km WSW of Ackerly, Texas
- 1.6 14 km NNW of Midland, Texas
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.