Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist
M 2.7mb_lg
Earthquake near Broken Bow, NE
No earthquake was likely felt in Broken Bow in the 24 hours to 12:53 am CST (06:53 UTC). The last one was M 5.0, 622 km (387 mi) S, at 5:21 am CDT on 23 July 2026, estimated intensity II (weak) in town; 499 felt reports to USGS. Every earthquake near Broken Bow
This page: a magnitude 2.7 earthquake was recorded 41 km (26 mi) west of Broken Bow, NE, at 8:57 am CDT on 15 August 2018 (13:57 UTC), 5.0 km deep. 3 people have reported feeling it to USGS.
USGS: 4 km E of Arnold, Nebraska
- When
- 8:57 am CDT on 15 August 2018 ()
- Where
- 41 km (26 mi) west of Broken Bow, NE · earthquakes near Broken Bow
- Magnitude
- M 2.7 (mb_lg)
- Depth
- 5.0 km below the surface
- Felt
- 3 reports · strongest reported intensity III
- Nearest
- Logan County, 29 km WNW
- Status
- Reviewed by a seismologist
USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 2938 days ago
Earthquake alerts for Broken Bow, NE
Get a notification in this browser when USGS records an earthquake near Broken Bow, NE. No account or email needed.
Alerts are on for .
Not a warning. An alert comes after USGS publishes a quake, usually minutes after the shaking. For early warning use ShakeAlert, through your phone's Wireless Emergency Alerts or the MyShake app.
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. In Broken Bow, 41 km away, the estimate is intensity II (weak). 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: Broken Bow 41 km, intensity II. 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.
- Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 45,000× the energy of this one
- Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 32,000× the energy of this one
- Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 2.8× the energy of this one
- 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
The largest earthquake within 50 km since 2016 was M 4.1 on 2018-06-30 — about 130 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 41.4199, -100.1362. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Logan County, NE | 29 km (18 mi) | WNW | earthquakes near Logan County |
| Custer County, NE | 34 km (21 mi) | E | earthquakes near Custer County |
| Blaine County, NE | 58 km (36 mi) | NNE | earthquakes near Blaine County |
| Thomas County, NE | 58 km (36 mi) | NNW | earthquakes near Thomas County |
| Lincoln County, NE | 65 km (41 mi) | SW | earthquakes near Lincoln County |
| Dawson County, NE | 67 km (42 mi) | SSE | earthquakes near Dawson County |
Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.
Aftershocks so far
6 earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.
- 3.0 10 km S of Arnold, Nebraska
- 2.1 5 km S of Arnold, Nebraska
- 2.6 8 km SE of Arnold, Nebraska
- 2.5 13 km WNW of Callaway, Nebraska
- 2.6 7 km WSW of Arnold, Nebraska
- 2.6 6 km SE of Arnold, Nebraska
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.