Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist
M 2.2ml
Earthquake near Bedford, NH
No earthquake was likely felt in Bedford in the 24 hours to 4:24 pm EST (21:24 UTC). The last one was M 2.1, 15 km (10 mi) SW, at 1:45 am EST on 2 January 2026, estimated intensity II (weak) in town; 221 felt reports to USGS. Every earthquake near Bedford
This page: a magnitude 2.2 earthquake was recorded 2 km (1 mi) west of Bedford, NH, at 2:15 pm EST on 11 February 2017 (19:15 UTC), 11 km deep. 369 people have reported feeling it to USGS.
USGS: 2 km W of Bedford, New Hampshire
9 km (6 mi) WSW of Manchester, NH
- When
- 2:15 pm EST on 11 February 2017 ()
- Where
- 2 km (1 mi) west of Bedford, NH · earthquakes near Bedford
- Magnitude
- M 2.2 (ml)
- Depth
- 11 km below the surface
- Felt
- 369 reports · strongest reported intensity V
- Nearest
- Hillsborough County, 15 km WSW
- Status
- Reviewed by a seismologist
USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 3193 days ago
Earthquake alerts for Bedford, NH
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This was a minor earthquake. Quakes this small are rarely felt and do not cause damage.
At this magnitude and depth, people at rest would likely notice it out to about 31 km (19 mi) from the epicentre. In Bedford, 2 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.
Earthquakes near other towns within 30 km: Pinardville, Manchester, Goffstown, Merrimack, East Merrimack, Mont Vernon.
How big was it?
This earthquake released about 60 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 3.2 would have released about 32 times as much.
- Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 250,000× the energy of this one
- Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 180,000× the energy of this one
- Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 16× the energy of this one
- This earthquake M 2.2 about 60 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 42.9458, -71.5412. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hillsborough County, NH | 15 km (10 mi) | WSW | earthquakes near Hillsborough County |
| Rockingham County, NH | 36 km (23 mi) | E | earthquakes near Rockingham County |
| Merrimack County, NH | 41 km (25 mi) | NNW | earthquakes near Merrimack County |
| Middlesex County, MA | 53 km (33 mi) | SSE | earthquakes near Middlesex County |
| Strafford County, NH | 56 km (35 mi) | NE | earthquakes near Strafford County |
| Cheshire County, NH | 58 km (36 mi) | W | earthquakes near Cheshire County |
Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.
Aftershocks so far
25 earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.
- 1.5 2 km S of Bedford, New Hampshire
- 2.1 2 km NNW of Milford, New Hampshire
- 1.7 2 km NE of Danville, New Hampshire
- 1.9 2 km N of Webster, New Hampshire
- 1.5 5 km SSE of Boscawen, New Hampshire
- 1.6 2 km S of Henniker, New Hampshire
- 1.7 3 km SW of Townsend, Massachusetts
- 2.0 2 km WNW of Loudon, New Hampshire
- 2.7 5 km SW of Chichester, New Hampshire
- 2.1 4 km SE of Warner, New Hampshire
- 1.9 0 km SW of Bow Bog, New Hampshire
- 2.3 3 km NNE of Antrim, New Hampshire
- 1.8 5 km NNW of Contoocook, New Hampshire
- 1.9 4 km SSE of Canterbury, New Hampshire
- 1.8 4 km S of Canterbury, New Hampshire
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.