QuakeIndex

Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist

M 2.7ml

western Texas

Yes. A magnitude 2.7 earthquake was recorded in western Texas, 12 km (7 mi) NNE of Odessa, TX, at 3:25 am CDT on 14 May 2022 (08:25 UTC), 7.3 km deep. 2 people have reported feeling it to USGS.

12 km (7 mi) NNE of Odessa, TX

· 7.3 km deep · released about 340 lb of TNT

10 km30 km60 km120 km N Ector County 25 kmMidland County 35 kmAndrews County 48 kmMartin County 49 kmCrane County 64 kmWinkler County 72 kmUpton County 74 kmGlasscock County 75 kmHoward County 89 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
Texas today
every earthquake in Texas in the last 24 hours
Magnitude
M 2.7 (ml)
Depth
7.3 km below the surface
Felt
2 reports · strongest reported intensity III
Nearest
Ector County, 25 km WSW
Status
Reviewed by a seismologist

USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 1556 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 56 km (35 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.

Likely felt in: Gardendale 8 km, intensity III · Odessa 16 km, intensity III · Midland 22 km, intensity III. Estimated for each town centre; each link is that town's own record.

How big was it?

This earthquake released about 340 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 3.7 would have released about 32 times as much.

  1. Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 45,000× the energy of this one
  2. Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 32,000× the energy of this one
  3. Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 2.8× the energy of this one
  4. This earthquake M 2.7 about 340 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 31.9821, -102.3100. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Nearby places

PlaceDistanceDirection from the epicentre
Ector County, TX 25 km (16 mi) WSW earthquakes near Ector County
Midland County, TX 35 km (21 mi) ESE earthquakes near Midland County
Andrews County, TX 48 km (30 mi) NW earthquakes near Andrews County
Martin County, TX 49 km (30 mi) NE earthquakes near Martin County
Crane County, TX 64 km (40 mi) SSW earthquakes near Crane County
Winkler County, TX 72 km (45 mi) WSW earthquakes near Winkler 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. 2.2 western Texas
  2. 1.6 4 km SE of Gardendale, Texas
  3. 2.3 5 km SSE of Gardendale, Texas
  4. 2.5 6 km SSE of Gardendale, Texas
  5. 2.1 20 km NW of Stanton, Texas
  6. 2.0 21 km NW of Stanton, Texas
  7. 1.9 18 km NW of Stanton, Texas
  8. 1.8 22 km NW of Stanton, Texas
  9. 1.8 21 km NW of Stanton, Texas
  10. 1.8 20 km NW of Stanton, Texas
  11. 1.9 21 km NW of Stanton, Texas
  12. 1.5 21 km NW of Stanton, Texas
  13. 2.9 21 km NW of Stanton, Texas
  14. 1.9 20 km NNW of Midland, Texas
  15. 1.6 3 km SE of Gardendale, 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

QuakeIndex does not issue warnings. For earthquake early warning see ShakeAlert.