Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist
M 2.5mb_lg
Earthquake near Ellis, KS
USGS: 11 km NNW of Ellis, Kansas
- When
- 10:48 pm CDT on 31 August 2016 ()
- Where
- 11 km (7 mi) NNW of Ellis, KS · earthquakes near Ellis
- Magnitude
- M 2.5 (mb_lg)
- Depth
- 5.5 km below the surface
- Felt
- 3 reports · strongest reported intensity III
- Nearest
- Trego County, 26 km WSW
- Status
- Reviewed by a seismologist
USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 3595 days ago
A magnitude 2.5 earthquake was recorded 11 km (7 mi) NNW of Ellis, KS, at 10:48 pm CDT on 31 August 2016 (03:48 UTC). 3 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: WaKeeney, Hays.
How big was it?
This earthquake released about 170 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 3.5 would have released about 32 times as much.
- Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 89,000× the energy of this one
- Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 63,000× the energy of this one
- Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 5.6× the energy of this one
- This earthquake M 2.5 about 170 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 39.0315, -99.6054. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Trego County, KS | 26 km (16 mi) | WSW | earthquakes near Trego County |
| Ellis County, KS | 28 km (17 mi) | ESE | earthquakes near Ellis County |
| Rooks County, KS | 43 km (26 mi) | NE | earthquakes near Rooks County |
| Graham County, KS | 43 km (27 mi) | NNW | earthquakes near Graham County |
| Rush County, KS | 62 km (39 mi) | SSE | earthquakes near Rush County |
| Ness County, KS | 67 km (41 mi) | SSW | earthquakes near Ness 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.
- 2.9 7 km N of Hays, Kansas
- 2.8 10 km SSW of Stockton, Kansas
- 2.5 1 km NE of Zurich, Kansas
- 2.6 14 km WSW of Natoma, Kansas
- 2.5 3 km NE of Bogue, Kansas
- 2.8 16 km S of Hill City, Kansas
- 3.0 2 km SW of Zurich, Kansas
- 2.7 2 km E of Hill City, Kansas
- 2.6 6 km SE of Hill City, Kansas
- 2.1 9 km SW of Bogue, Kansas
- 2.7 17 km NNE of Collyer, Kansas
- 2.5 7 km S of Hill City, Kansas
- 2.4 11 km SSE of Hill City, Kansas
- 2.3 10 km SE of Hill City, Kansas
- 2.3 10 km SSE of Hill City, Kansas
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.