QuakeIndex

Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist

M 1.6ml

Earthquake near Hobart, WA

Yes. A magnitude 1.6 earthquake was recorded 5 km (3 mi) E of Hobart, WA, at 10:27 am PDT on 31 May 2016 (17:27 UTC), 6.3 km deep.

This was on 31 May 2016. The latest near Hobart: M 2.5 on 26 June 2026.

USGS: 4 km E of Hobart, Washington

39 km (24 mi) ESE of Seattle, WA · 21 km (13 mi) SSE of Sammamish, WA

10:27 am PDT, May 31, 2016 · · 6.3 km deep · released about 6.8 lb of TNT

10 km30 km60 km120 km N King County 9 kmPierce County 46 kmKitsap County 60 kmSnohomish County 71 kmThurston County 88 kmMason County 95 kmIsland County 99 kmKittitas County 99 kmLewis County 101 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
10:27 am PDT on 31 May 2016 ()
Where
5 km (3 mi) E of Hobart, WA · earthquakes near Hobart
Magnitude
M 1.6 (ml)
Depth
6.3 km below the surface
Felt
no reports yet
Nearest
King County, 9 km NE
Nearest mapped fault
Rattlesnake Mountain fault, 3 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 569 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 9 km (6 mi) from the epicentre. In Hobart, 5 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: Mirrormont, Ravensdale, Maple Valley, Wilderness Rim, North Bend, Riverbend.

How big was it?

This earthquake released about 6.8 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 2.6 would have released about 32 times as much.

  1. Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 2,200,000× the energy of this one
  2. Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 1,600,000× the energy of this one
  3. Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 140× the energy of this one
  4. This earthquake M 1.6 about 6.8 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 4 earthquakes of M5 or more within 50 km:

  1. 6.7 1 km ENE of Dash Point, Washington · 39 km WSW of this epicentre
  2. 5.4 8 km NNE of Lake Marcel-Stillwater, Washington · 37 km N of this epicentre
  3. 5.2 9 km NE of Lake Marcel-Stillwater, Washington · 36 km N of this epicentre
  4. 5.0 3 km WSW of Des Moines, Washington · 34 km W 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 47.4278, -121.9123. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Nearby places

PlaceDistanceDirection from the epicentre
King County, WA 9 km (6 mi) NE earthquakes near King County
Pierce County, WA 46 km (28 mi) SSW earthquakes near Pierce County
Kitsap County, WA 60 km (37 mi) WNW earthquakes near Kitsap County
Snohomish County, WA 71 km (44 mi) N earthquakes near Snohomish County
Thurston County, WA 88 km (55 mi) SW earthquakes near Thurston County
Mason County, WA 95 km (59 mi) W earthquakes near Mason County

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

Aftershocks so far

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

  1. 1.8 11 km SSW of Snoqualmie Pass, Washington
  2. 1.6 3 km SW of Shoreline, Washington
  3. 2.2 1 km W of Bonney Lake, Washington
  4. 1.6 0 km NNE of Mercer Island, Washington
  5. 1.8 1 km SSE of Mercer Island, Washington
  6. 1.9 1 km NE of Alderton, Washington
  7. 1.6 5 km N of Seattle, Washington
  8. 1.9 1 km SSE of North Bend, Washington
  9. 1.9 10 km NE of Snoqualmie, Washington
  10. 1.8 3 km SE of Cathcart, Washington
  11. 1.8 Washington
  12. 1.5 11 km W of Greenwater, Washington
  13. 1.5 1 km W of Seattle, Washington
  14. 2.1 0 km NNW of Des Moines, Washington
  15. 1.6 12 km W of Greenwater, Washington

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.