QuakeIndex

Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist

M 2.3mb_lg

Earthquake near Wolfeboro, NH

No earthquake was likely felt in Wolfeboro in the 24 hours to 7:33 am EST (12:33 UTC). The last one was M 2.0, 20 km (13 mi) S, at 4:44 pm EDT on 14 April 2025, estimated intensity II (weak) in town; 25 felt reports to USGS. Every earthquake near Wolfeboro

This page: a magnitude 2.3 earthquake was recorded 6 km (4 mi) northeast of Wolfeboro, NH, at 11:59 pm EDT on 23 May 2022 (03:59 UTC), 1.3 km deep. 56 people have reported feeling it to USGS.

USGS: 5 km NE of Wolfeboro, New Hampshire

11:59 pm EDT, May 23, 2022 · · 1.3 km deep · released about 85 lb of TNT

10 km30 km60 km120 km N Belknap County 25 kmCarroll County 28 kmStrafford County 37 kmYork County 44 kmMerrimack County 55 kmGrafton County 65 kmCumberland County 69 kmRockingham County 70 kmSullivan County 91 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
11:59 pm EDT on 23 May 2022 ()
Where
6 km (4 mi) northeast of Wolfeboro, NH · earthquakes near Wolfeboro
Magnitude
M 2.3 (mb_lg)
Depth
1.3 km below the surface
Felt
56 reports · strongest reported intensity V
Nearest
Belknap County, 25 km WSW
Status
Reviewed by a seismologist

USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 655 days ago

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 37 km (23 mi) from the epicentre. In Wolfeboro, 6 km away, the estimate is intensity III (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.

Earthquakes near other towns within 30 km: Ossipee, Tuftonboro, Wakefield, Sanbornville, New Durham, Effingham.

How big was it?

This earthquake released about 85 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 3.3 would have released about 32 times as much.

  1. Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 180,000× the energy of this one
  2. Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 130,000× the energy of this one
  3. Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 11× the energy of this one
  4. This earthquake M 2.3 about 85 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 2 earthquakes of M5 or more within 50 km:

  1. 5.6 5 km NNW of Tamworth, New Hampshire · 34 km NNW of this epicentre
  2. 5.3 8 km W of Tamworth, New Hampshire · 34 km NNW 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 43.6151, -71.1512. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Nearby places

PlaceDistanceDirection from the epicentre
Belknap County, NH 25 km (15 mi) WSW earthquakes near Belknap County
Carroll County, NH 28 km (18 mi) N earthquakes near Carroll County
Strafford County, NH 37 km (23 mi) SSE earthquakes near Strafford County
York County, ME 44 km (27 mi) ESE earthquakes near York County
Merrimack County, NH 55 km (34 mi) SW earthquakes near Merrimack County
Grafton County, NH 65 km (41 mi) WNW earthquakes near Grafton County

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

Aftershocks so far

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

  1. 1.6 2 km SW of Center Sandwich, New Hampshire
  2. 1.9 4 km ESE of Northfield, New Hampshire
  3. 1.9 8 km ENE of Lake Arrowhead, Maine
  4. 1.5 6 km SE of New Hampton, New Hampshire
  5. 2.0 5 km S of Alton, New Hampshire
  6. 2.2 4 km NW of Gilford, New Hampshire
  7. 1.9 3 km WSW of Dayton, Maine
  8. 2.0 2 km WNW of Loudon, New Hampshire
  9. 1.5 6 km SE of Newfield, Maine
  10. 1.8 3 km SW of Center Sandwich, New Hampshire
  11. 2.9 4 km SW of Center Sandwich, New Hampshire
  12. 1.9 5 km SW of New Durham, New Hampshire
  13. 2.3 5 km NW of Laconia, New Hampshire

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.