Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist
M 3.1mb_lg
Earthquake near Marion, KS
USGS: 9 km ENE of Marion, Kansas
86 km (54 mi) NNE of Wichita, KS
- When
- 5:19 pm CST on 29 January 2020 ()
- Where
- 10 km (6 mi) ENE of Marion, KS · earthquakes near Marion
- Magnitude
- M 3.1 (mb_lg)
- Depth
- 5.0 km below the surface
- Felt
- 11 reports · strongest reported intensity V
- Nearest
- Marion County, 16 km WSW
- Status
- Reviewed by a seismologist
USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 2358 days ago
A magnitude 3.1 earthquake was recorded 10 km (6 mi) ENE of Marion, KS, at 5:19 pm CST on 29 January 2020 (23:19 UTC). 11 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: Hillsboro, Peabody.
How big was it?
This earthquake released about 1,300 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 4.1 would have released about 32 times as much.
- Northridge, California 1994 M 6.7 250,000× the energy of this one
- Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 11,000× the energy of this one
- Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 7,900× the energy of this one
- This earthquake M 3.1 about 1,300 lb of TNT
- Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 this one released 1.4× more
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 38.3889, -96.9189. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Marion County, KS | 16 km (10 mi) | WSW | earthquakes near Marion County |
| Chase County, KS | 30 km (19 mi) | ESE | earthquakes near Chase County |
| Morris County, KS | 41 km (25 mi) | NE | earthquakes near Morris County |
| Dickinson County, KS | 57 km (36 mi) | NNW | earthquakes near Dickinson County |
| Harvey County, KS | 59 km (37 mi) | SW | earthquakes near Harvey County |
| McPherson County, KS | 64 km (39 mi) | W | earthquakes near McPherson County |
Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.
Aftershocks so far
51 earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.
- 2.6 7 km ESE of Marion, Kansas
- 3.5 6 km WSW of Woodbine, Kansas
- 2.7 6 km NE of Cedar Point, Kansas
- 2.4 2 km S of Marion, Kansas
- 2.4 14 km ESE of Lincolnville, Kansas
- 2.5 13 km ENE of Marion, Kansas
- 2.3 11 km N of Hope, Kansas
- 2.5 14 km SE of Lincolnville, Kansas
- 2.3 14 km N of Cedar Point, Kansas
- 3.2 13 km SE of Lincolnville, Kansas
- 2.5 12 km SE of Lincolnville, Kansas
- 2.4 15 km SE of Lincolnville, Kansas
- 2.6 13 km SE of Lincolnville, Kansas
- 2.5 15 km WNW of Elmdale, Kansas
- 2.3 14 km SE of Lincolnville, 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.