Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist
M 2.6ml
Earthquake near Atoka, NM
No earthquake was likely felt in Atoka in the 24 hours to 10:01 am MST (17:01 UTC). The last one was M 2.8, 59 km (36 mi) S, at 4:44 am MST on 1 November 2026, estimated intensity II (weak) in town. Every earthquake near Atoka
This page: a magnitude 2.6 earthquake was recorded 24 km (15 mi) south-southwest of Atoka, NM, at 4:56 pm MDT on 31 May 2026 (22:56 UTC), 6.8 km deep.
USGS: 24 km SSW of Atoka, New Mexico
- When
- 4:56 pm MDT on 31 May 2026 ()
- Where
- 24 km (15 mi) south-southwest of Atoka, NM · earthquakes near Atoka
- Magnitude
- M 2.6 (ml)
- Depth
- 6.8 km below the surface
- Felt
- no reports yet
- Nearest
- Eddy County, 20 km SE
- Status
- Reviewed by a seismologist
USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 92 days ago
Earthquake alerts for Atoka, NM
Get a notification in this browser when USGS records an earthquake near Atoka, NM. 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 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 51 km (32 mi) from the epicentre. In Atoka, 24 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.
Likely felt in: Atoka 24 km, intensity II · Carlsbad 28 km, intensity II · Artesia 32 km, intensity II · Loving 47 km, intensity II. Estimated for each town centre; each link is that town's own record.
How big was it?
This earthquake released about 240 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 3.6 would have released about 32 times as much.
- Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 63,000× the energy of this one
- Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 45,000× the energy of this one
- Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 4× the energy of this one
- This earthquake M 2.6 about 240 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 in our catalogue was M 4.4 on 2026-04-06 — about 500 times the energy of this one.
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 32.5629, -104.4756. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Eddy County, NM | 20 km (12 mi) | SE | earthquakes near Eddy County |
| Chaves County, NM | 89 km (55 mi) | N | earthquakes near Chaves County |
| Lea County, NM | 103 km (64 mi) | ENE | earthquakes near Lea County |
| Loving County, TX | 117 km (73 mi) | SE | earthquakes near Loving County |
| Otero County, NM | 120 km (74 mi) | W | earthquakes near Otero County |
Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.
Aftershocks so far
15 earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.
- 2.8 14 km NW of Whites City, New Mexico
- 2.7 21 km NNW of Whites City, New Mexico
- 2.5 22 km W of Carlsbad, New Mexico
- 2.5 33 km SSE of Hope, New Mexico
- 3.6 18 km NNW of Whites City, New Mexico
- 3.1 21 km NNW of Whites City, New Mexico
- 3.6 23 km WSW of Carlsbad, New Mexico
- 2.9 31 km SSE of Hope, New Mexico
- 3.4 33 km SSE of Hope, New Mexico
- 2.8 13 km WNW of Whites City, New Mexico
- 2.5 19 km NW of Whites City, New Mexico
- 2.7 22 km NNW of Whites City, New Mexico
- 2.9 5 km SSE of Livingston Wheeler, New Mexico
- 3.1 25 km WNW of La Huerta, New Mexico
- 2.5 26 km SSE of Hope, New Mexico
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.