Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist
M 2.3mb_lg
Earthquake near Belle Plaine, KS
No earthquake was likely felt in Belle Plaine in the 24 hours to 4:41 am CST (10:41 UTC). The last one was M 3.4, 210 km (130 mi) SSW, at 5:53 am CST on 7 November 2026, estimated intensity II (weak) in town; 23 felt reports to USGS. Every earthquake near Belle Plaine
This page: a magnitude 2.3 earthquake was recorded 12 km (8 mi) west of Belle Plaine, KS, at 2:21 pm CST on 15 January 2018 (20:21 UTC), 5.0 km deep. 7 people have reported feeling it to USGS.
USGS: 12 km W of Belle Plaine, Kansas
33 km (20 mi) S of Wichita, KS
- When
- 2:21 pm CST on 15 January 2018 ()
- Where
- 12 km (8 mi) west of Belle Plaine, KS · earthquakes near Belle Plaine
- Magnitude
- M 2.3 (mb_lg)
- Depth
- 5.0 km below the surface
- Felt
- 7 reports · strongest reported intensity V
- Nearest
- Sumner County, 19 km SSW
- Status
- Reviewed by a seismologist
USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 3139 days ago
Earthquake alerts for Belle Plaine, KS
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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 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 37 km (23 mi) from the epicentre. In Belle Plaine, 12 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: Belle Plaine 12 km, intensity II · Wellington 15 km, intensity II · Haysville 19 km, intensity II · Conway Springs 20 km, intensity II · Derby 21 km, intensity II · Wichita 33 km, intensity II. Estimated for each town centre; each link is that town's own record.
How big was it?
This earthquake released about 85 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 3.3 would have released about 32 times as much.
- Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 180,000× the energy of this one
- Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 130,000× the energy of this one
- Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 11× the energy of this one
- This earthquake M 2.3 about 85 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 37.3996, -97.4180. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sumner County, KS | 19 km (12 mi) | SSW | earthquakes near Sumner County |
| Sedgwick County, KS | 32 km (20 mi) | N | earthquakes near Sedgwick County |
| Cowley County, KS | 55 km (34 mi) | ESE | earthquakes near Cowley County |
| Harper County, KS | 62 km (39 mi) | WSW | earthquakes near Harper County |
| Butler County, KS | 66 km (41 mi) | NE | earthquakes near Butler County |
| Kingman County, KS | 66 km (41 mi) | WNW | earthquakes near Kingman 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.
- 1.7 7 km E of Caldwell, Kansas
- 1.6 2 km W of Freeport, Kansas
- 1.9 5 km W of Danville, Kansas
- 2.1 2 km W of Freeport, Kansas
- 2.5 7 km NW of Cheney, Kansas
- 1.7 7 km S of Argonia, Kansas
- 2.5 Kansas
- 3.5 7 km E of Freeport, Kansas
- 1.6 7 km ESE of Freeport, Kansas
- 2.2 8 km WSW of Hunnewell, Kansas
- 2.0 9 km WSW of Hunnewell, Kansas
- 3.2 7 km W of Hunnewell, Kansas
- 2.2 8 km W of Hunnewell, Kansas
- 1.9 5 km WSW of Danville, Kansas
- 1.6 4 km E of Freeport, 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.