Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist
M 2.9mb_lg
Earthquake near Beloit, KS
USGS: 14 km NNW of Cawker City, Kansas
- When
- 4:15 pm CDT on 23 April 2021 ()
- Where
- 40 km (25 mi) WNW of Beloit, KS · earthquakes near Beloit
- Magnitude
- M 2.9 (mb_lg)
- Depth
- 5.0 km below the surface
- Felt
- 1 report · strongest reported intensity III
- Nearest
- Smith County, 29 km NW
- Status
- Reviewed by a seismologist
USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 1913 days ago
A magnitude 2.9 earthquake was recorded 40 km (25 mi) WNW of Beloit, KS, at 4:15 pm CDT on 23 April 2021 (21:15 UTC). 1 person has 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: Osborne, Smith Center.
How big was it?
This earthquake released about 680 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 3.9 would have released about 32 times as much.
- Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 22,000× the energy of this one
- Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 16,000× the energy of this one
- Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 1.4× the energy of this one
- This earthquake M 2.9 about 680 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 39.6266, -98.5128. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Smith County, KS | 29 km (18 mi) | NW | earthquakes near Smith County |
| Jewell County, KS | 30 km (19 mi) | NE | earthquakes near Jewell County |
| Mitchell County, KS | 37 km (23 mi) | SE | earthquakes near Mitchell County |
| Osborne County, KS | 38 km (24 mi) | SW | earthquakes near Osborne County |
| Webster County, NE | 62 km (38 mi) | N | earthquakes near Webster County |
| Lincoln County, KS | 69 km (43 mi) | SSE | earthquakes near Lincoln County |
Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.
Aftershocks so far
47 earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.
- 2.5 4 km NNE of Jewell, Kansas
- 2.6 15 km SSW of Riverton, Nebraska
- 2.6 5 km WSW of Formoso, Kansas
- 2.9 13 km NNE of Luray, Kansas
- 2.7 4 km SE of Glen Elder, Kansas
- 2.5 1 km NNW of Glen Elder, Kansas
- 2.5 1 km NNE of Glen Elder, Kansas
- 2.1 0 km N of Glen Elder, Kansas
- 2.8 2 km NNE of Glen Elder, Kansas
- 2.9 2 km NE of Glen Elder, Kansas
- 2.8 0 km NW of Glen Elder, Kansas
- 2.7 1 km N of Glen Elder, Kansas
- 2.7 0 km WSW of Glen Elder, Kansas
- 3.2 0 km SE of Glen Elder, Kansas
- 2.6 7 km N of Jewell, 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.