QuakeIndex

Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist

M 1.7ml

Earthquake near Nephi, UT

No earthquake was likely felt in Nephi in the 24 hours to 1:16 pm MST (20:16 UTC). The last one was M 2.3, 10 km (6 mi) SW, at 10:00 pm MST on 1 January 2026, estimated intensity II (weak) in town. Every earthquake near Nephi

This page: a magnitude 1.7 earthquake was recorded 25 km (15 mi) south-southwest of Nephi, UT, at 6:38 pm MDT on 22 October 2021 (00:38 UTC), 13 km deep.

USGS: 8 km SW of Levan, Utah

6:38 pm MDT, Oct 22, 2021 · · 13 km deep · released about 9.3 lb of TNT

10 km30 km60 km120 km N Sanpete County 33 kmUtah County 73 kmJuab County 78 kmSevier County 84 kmWasatch County 113 kmCarbon County 116 kmEmery County 117 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
6:38 pm MDT on 22 October 2021 ()
Where
25 km (15 mi) south-southwest of Nephi, UT · earthquakes near Nephi
Magnitude
M 1.7 (ml)
Depth
13 km below the surface
Felt
no reports yet
Nearest
Sanpete County, 33 km ESE
Nearest mapped fault
Wasatch fault, 5 km from its surface trace — near is not the same as on
Status
Reviewed by a seismologist

USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 1844 days ago

This was a minor earthquake. Quakes this small are rarely felt and do not cause damage.

At this magnitude and depth it was probably too small to be felt, even directly above it. In Nephi, 25 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.

Earthquakes near other towns within 30 km: Moroni, Fountain Green.

How big was it?

This earthquake released about 9.3 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 2.7 would have released about 32 times as much.

  1. Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 1,600,000× the energy of this one
  2. Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 1,100,000× the energy of this one
  3. Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 100× the energy of this one
  4. This earthquake M 1.7 about 9.3 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. 5.0 3 km WSW of Nephi, Utah · 23 km N of this epicentre
  2. 5.0 1 km SSW of Mount Nebo, Utah · 49 km N 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 39.4972, -111.9205. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Nearby places

PlaceDistanceDirection from the epicentre
Sanpete County, UT 33 km (20 mi) ESE earthquakes near Sanpete County
Utah County, UT 73 km (45 mi) NNE earthquakes near Utah County
Juab County, UT 78 km (49 mi) WNW earthquakes near Juab County
Sevier County, UT 84 km (52 mi) S earthquakes near Sevier County
Wasatch County, UT 113 km (70 mi) NE earthquakes near Wasatch County
Carbon County, UT 116 km (72 mi) E earthquakes near Carbon County

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

Aftershocks so far

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

  1. 1.6 10 km NW of Fayette, Utah
  2. 1.5 8 km NNE of Fountain Green, Utah
  3. 1.8 11 km S of Levan, Utah
  4. 2.9 11 km WSW of Levan, Utah
  5. 2.6 6 km SW of Rocky Ridge, Utah
  6. 1.6 5 km WNW of Scipio, Utah
  7. 1.7 16 km N of Fayette, Utah
  8. 1.6 16 km N of Fayette, Utah
  9. 1.9 16 km N of Fayette, Utah
  10. 1.7 15 km N of Fayette, Utah
  11. 1.7 9 km NNW of Fayette, Utah
  12. 1.6 4 km WNW of Centerfield, Utah
  13. 1.7 7 km NNE of Moroni, Utah
  14. 2.1 8 km NNW of Fayette, Utah
  15. 1.7 8 km ENE of Ephraim, Utah

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.