QuakeIndex

Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist

M 2.0ml

Colorado

Yes. A magnitude 2.0 earthquake was recorded in Colorado, at 6:21 pm MST on 10 March 2023 (01:21 UTC), 6.5 km deep. 1 person has reported feeling it to USGS.

· 6.5 km deep · released about 30 lb of TNT

Felt it? Tell USGS Check my area
10 km30 km60 km120 km N Huerfano County 57 kmCostilla County 61 kmLas Animas County 64 kmColfax County 66 kmAlamosa County 101 kmTaos County 105 kmPueblo County 109 kmCuster County 114 kmOtero County 118 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
Magnitude
M 2.0 (ml)
Depth
6.5 km below the surface
Felt
1 report · strongest reported intensity IV
Nearest
Huerfano County, 57 km NNW
Status
Reviewed by a seismologist

USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 1276 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 24 km (15 mi) from the epicentre. 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: Trinidad 22 km, intensity II. Estimated for each town centre; each link is that town's own record.

How big was it?

This earthquake released about 30 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 3.0 would have released about 32 times as much.

  1. Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 500,000× the energy of this one
  2. Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 350,000× the energy of this one
  3. Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 32× the energy of this one
  4. This earthquake M 2.0 about 30 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

The largest earthquake within 50 km since 2016 was M 4.3 on 2023-03-10 — about 2,800 times the energy of this one.

Before 2016, the USGS record lists 2 earthquakes of M5 or more within 50 km:

  1. 5.3 6 km S of Valdez, Colorado · 16 km SSE of this epicentre
  2. 5.0 20 km S of Weston, Colorado · 29 km SSW 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 37.2020, -104.7466. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Nearby places

PlaceDistanceDirection from the epicentre
Huerfano County, CO 57 km (36 mi) NNW earthquakes near Huerfano County
Costilla County, CO 61 km (38 mi) W earthquakes near Costilla County
Las Animas County, CO 64 km (39 mi) ENE earthquakes near Las Animas County
Colfax County, NM 66 km (41 mi) S earthquakes near Colfax County
Alamosa County, CO 101 km (63 mi) WNW earthquakes near Alamosa County
Taos County, NM 105 km (66 mi) SW earthquakes near Taos County

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

Aftershocks so far

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

  1. 1.5 32 km S of Segundo, Colorado
  2. 2.8 8 km N of El Moro, Colorado
  3. 3.2 6 km NW of El Moro, Colorado
  4. 2.3 7 km N of El Moro, Colorado
  5. 2.1 10 km SW of Weston, Colorado
  6. 1.6 13 km SW of Weston, Colorado
  7. 1.9 New Mexico
  8. 2.6 16 km SSW of Weston, Colorado
  9. 1.5 New Mexico
  10. 2.1 7 km WNW of Hoehne, Colorado
  11. 1.5 10 km NNE of Weston, Colorado
  12. 1.7 31 km S of Segundo, Colorado
  13. 2.8 18 km S of Stonewall Gap, Colorado
  14. 3.1 15 km SW of Weston, Colorado
  15. 2.5 7 km N of El Moro, Colorado

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.