meteorite · reviewed by a seismologist
M 1.8ml
Earthquake near Walled Lake, MI
No earthquake was likely felt in Walled Lake in the 24 hours to 3:21 pm EST (20:21 UTC). The last one was M 2.7, 51 km (32 mi) S, at 5:32 pm EDT on 4 May 2026, estimated intensity II (weak) in town; 222 felt reports to USGS. Every earthquake near Walled Lake
No: USGS classifies this as a meteorite, not an earthquake. A magnitude 1.8 meteorite was recorded in Walled Lake, MI, at 8:10 pm EST on 16 January 2018 (01:10 UTC), less than 1 km deep. 448 people have reported feeling it to USGS.
USGS: 0 km N of Walled Lake, Michigan
7 km (4 mi) N of Novi, MI · 36 km (22 mi) WNW of Detroit, MI
- When
- 8:10 pm EST on 16 January 2018 ()
- Where
- in Walled Lake, MI · earthquakes near Walled Lake
- Magnitude
- M 1.8 (ml)
- Depth
- 0.0 km below the surface
- Felt
- 448 reports · strongest reported intensity IV
- Nearest
- Oakland County, 16 km NNE
- Status
- Reviewed by a seismologist
USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 1779 days ago
Earthquake alerts for Walled Lake, MI
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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 17 km (11 mi) from the epicentre. 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: Wolverine Lake, Wixom, Novi, West Bloomfield Township, Farmington Hills, Orchard Lake.
USGS catalogues this as meteorite, not an earthquake.
How big was it?
This earthquake released about 15 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 2.8 would have released about 32 times as much.
- Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 1,000,000× the energy of this one
- Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 710,000× the energy of this one
- Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 63× the energy of this one
- This earthquake M 1.8 about 15 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 42.5380, -83.4810. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oakland County, MI | 16 km (10 mi) | NNE | earthquakes near Oakland County |
| Wayne County, MI | 33 km (21 mi) | SSE | earthquakes near Wayne County |
| Livingston County, MI | 36 km (22 mi) | WNW | earthquakes near Livingston County |
| Washtenaw County, MI | 44 km (27 mi) | SW | earthquakes near Washtenaw County |
| Macomb County, MI | 49 km (30 mi) | ENE | earthquakes near Macomb County |
| Genesee County, MI | 57 km (35 mi) | NNW | earthquakes near Genesee County |
Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.
Aftershocks so far
No further earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.
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.