Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist
M 4.0mwr
Earthquake near Stanton, TX
No earthquake was likely felt in Stanton in the 24 hours to 8:43 pm CST (02:43 UTC). The last one was M 2.5, 28 km (17 mi) S, at 4:17 am CST on 4 November 2026, estimated intensity II (weak) in town. Every earthquake near Stanton
This page: a magnitude 4.0 earthquake was recorded 18 km (11 mi) north of Stanton, TX, at 2:44 pm CST on 31 December 2020 (20:44 UTC), 5.0 km deep. 34 people have reported feeling it to USGS.
USGS: 18 km N of Stanton, Texas
43 km (26 mi) NE of Midland, TX
- When
- 2:44 pm CST on 31 December 2020 ()
- Where
- 18 km (11 mi) north of Stanton, TX · earthquakes near Stanton
- Texas today
- every earthquake in Texas in the last 24 hours
- Magnitude
- M 4.0 (mwr)
- Depth
- 5.0 km below the surface
- Felt
- 34 reports · strongest reported intensity VI
- Measured shaking
- intensity V (ShakeMap)
- USGS impact alert
- green
- Nearest
- Martin County, 16 km W
- Status
- Reviewed by a seismologist
USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 2076 days ago
Earthquake alerts for Stanton, TX
Get a notification in this browser when USGS records an earthquake near Stanton, TX. 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 light earthquake. It is usually felt clearly nearby and can rattle windows and dishes, but damage is uncommon.
At this magnitude and depth, people at rest would likely notice it out to about 461 km (286 mi) from the epicentre. In Stanton, 18 km away, the estimate is intensity IV (light). 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: Stanton 18 km, intensity IV · Big Spring 30 km, intensity IV · Midland 43 km, intensity III. Estimated for each town centre; each link is that town's own record.
How big was it?
This earthquake released about 15 tons of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 5.0 would have released about 32 times as much.
- Northridge, California 1994 M 6.7 11,000× the energy of this one
- Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 500× the energy of this one
- Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 350× the energy of this one
- This earthquake M 4.0 about 15 tons of TNT
- Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 this one released 32× 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
The largest earthquake within 50 km (31 mi) since our catalogue begins in 2016. No other earthquake of M4 or more has been recorded this close in that time.
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 32.2951, -101.7941. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Martin County, TX | 16 km (10 mi) | W | earthquakes near Martin County |
| Howard County, TX | 33 km (21 mi) | E | earthquakes near Howard County |
| Dawson County, TX | 52 km (32 mi) | NNW | earthquakes near Dawson County |
| Glasscock County, TX | 54 km (34 mi) | SSE | earthquakes near Glasscock County |
| Midland County, TX | 57 km (35 mi) | SSW | earthquakes near Midland County |
| Borden County, TX | 59 km (37 mi) | NE | earthquakes near Borden County |
Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.
Aftershocks so far
45 earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.
- 2.3 13 km NNW of Midland, Texas
- 1.6 13 km NNW of Midland, Texas
- 1.7 western Texas
- 1.5 14 km SSE of Ackerly, Texas
- 2.1 13 km NNW of Midland, Texas
- 2.2 12 km NNW of Midland, Texas
- 2.4 12 km N of Midland, Texas
- 2.5 12 km NNW of Midland, Texas
- 2.3 12 km NNW of Midland, Texas
- 2.9 12 km NNW of Midland, Texas
- 2.3 13 km NNW of Midland, Texas
- 1.7 12 km N of Midland, Texas
- 1.6 18 km N of Stanton, Texas
- 1.6 13 km NNW of Midland, Texas
- 1.7 7 km SE of Midland, Texas
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.