QuakeIndex

Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist

M 1.6ml

Earthquake near Pearsall, TX

USGS: 13 km E of Pearsall, Texas

75 km (47 mi) SW of San Antonio, TX

11:14 pm CDT, Sep 30, 2026 · · 7.9 km deep · released about 7.6 lb of TNT

10 km30 km60 km120 km N Frio County 15 kmAtascosa County 41 kmMedina County 53 kmLa Salle County 62 kmMcMullen County 68 kmBexar County 74 kmZavala County 78 kmWilson County 90 kmUvalde County 94 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
11:14 pm CDT on 30 September 2026 ()
Where
14 km (8 mi) E of Pearsall, TX · earthquakes near Pearsall
Magnitude
M 1.6 (ml)
Depth
7.9 km below the surface
Felt
no reports yet
Nearest
Frio County, 15 km WSW
Status
Reviewed by a seismologist

USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 2 days ago

A magnitude 1.6 earthquake was recorded 14 km (8 mi) E of Pearsall, TX, at 11:14 pm CDT on 30 September 2026 (04:14 UTC). This was a minor earthquake. Quakes this small are rarely felt and do not cause damage.

Earthquakes near other towns within 30 km: Charlotte, Devine.

How big was it?

This earthquake released about 7.6 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 2.6 would have released about 32 times as much.

  1. Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 2,000,000× the energy of this one
  2. Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 1,400,000× the energy of this one
  3. Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 130× the energy of this one
  4. This earthquake M 1.6 about 7.6 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 28.8980, -98.9560. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Nearby places

PlaceDistanceDirection from the epicentre
Frio County, TX 15 km (9 mi) WSW earthquakes near Frio County
Atascosa County, TX 41 km (25 mi) E earthquakes near Atascosa County
Medina County, TX 53 km (33 mi) NNW earthquakes near Medina County
La Salle County, TX 62 km (39 mi) SSW earthquakes near La Salle County
McMullen County, TX 68 km (42 mi) SSE earthquakes near McMullen County
Bexar County, TX 74 km (46 mi) NE earthquakes near Bexar County

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

Aftershocks so far

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

  1. 1.7 11 km ESE of Pearsall, Texas
  2. 1.9 12 km E of Pearsall, Texas
  3. 1.5 12 km ESE of Pearsall, Texas
  4. 1.6 12 km ESE of Pearsall, Texas
  5. 1.6 13 km E of Pearsall, Texas
  6. 1.7 11 km E of Pearsall, Texas
  7. 1.6 13 km E of Pearsall, Texas
  8. 1.8 14 km ESE of Pearsall, Texas
  9. 1.9 15 km E of Pearsall, Texas
  10. 2.2 13 km ESE of Pearsall, Texas
  11. 1.9 12 km ESE of Pearsall, Texas
  12. 1.8 11 km ESE of Pearsall, Texas
  13. 1.9 14 km E of Pearsall, Texas
  14. 2.0 16 km ESE of Pearsall, 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.