QuakeIndex

Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist

M 2.5ml

Earthquake near Winnemucca, NV

No earthquake was likely felt in Winnemucca in the 24 hours to 1:33 am PST (09:33 UTC). The last one was M 5.7, 212 km (132 mi) SSW, at 6:29 pm PDT on 13 April 2026, estimated intensity II (weak) in town; 6,515 felt reports to USGS. Every earthquake near Winnemucca

This page: a magnitude 2.5 earthquake was recorded 27 km (16 mi) east-northeast of Winnemucca, NV, at 11:26 pm PST on 17 December 2020 (07:26 UTC), 10 km deep.

USGS: 16 km N of Golconda, Nevada

11:26 pm PST, Dec 17, 2020 · · 10 km deep · released about 170 lb of TNT

Every earthquake near Winnemucca Felt it? Tell USGS Check my area
10 km30 km60 km120 km N Humboldt County 65 kmPershing County 108 km
Distance rings around the epicentre, with the nearest towns at their true direction and later quakes as coloured dots. Not a shaking map — see the USGS ShakeMap for that.
When
11:26 pm PST on 17 December 2020 ()
Where
27 km (16 mi) east-northeast of Winnemucca, NV · earthquakes near Winnemucca
Magnitude
M 2.5 (ml)
Depth
10 km below the surface
Felt
no reports yet
Nearest
Humboldt County, 65 km WNW
Status
Reviewed by a seismologist

USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 2085 days ago

This was a small earthquake. Shaking like this is often felt indoors nearby and very rarely causes damage.

At this magnitude and depth, people at rest would likely notice it out to about 20 km (12 mi) from the epicentre. In Winnemucca, 27 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.

How big was it?

This earthquake released about 170 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 3.5 would have released about 32 times as much.

  1. Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 89,000× the energy of this one
  2. Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 63,000× the energy of this one
  3. Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 5.6× the energy of this one
  4. This earthquake M 2.5 about 170 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 lists one earthquake of M5 or more within 50 km:

  1. 5.9 Near Winnemucca, Nevada · 30 km WSW of this epicentre

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 41.0990, -117.4674. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Nearby places

PlaceDistanceDirection from the epicentre
Humboldt County, NV 65 km (40 mi) WNW earthquakes near Humboldt County
Pershing County, NV 108 km (67 mi) SW earthquakes near Pershing County

Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.

Aftershocks so far

10 earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.

  1. 2.0 37 km SE of Paradise Valley, Nevada
  2. 2.3 32 km NNE of Valmy, Nevada
  3. 3.2 35 km NNE of Valmy, Nevada
  4. 2.4 Nevada
  5. 3.1 5 km NE of Valmy, Nevada
  6. 3.1 17 km S of Paradise Valley, Nevada
  7. 2.1 14 km NNE of Golconda, Nevada
  8. 2.1 34 km NNE of Valmy, Nevada
  9. 3.2 11 km NW of Valmy, Nevada
  10. 3.7 18 km NNE of Golconda, Nevada

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

QuakeIndex does not issue warnings. For earthquake early warning see ShakeAlert.