QuakeIndex

explosion · reviewed by a seismologist

M 2.1ml

Earthquake near Pullman, WA

USGS: 3 km S of Farmington, Washington

74 km (46 mi) SSE of Spokane, WA

9:24 pm PDT, Jul 8, 2017 · · -0.3 km deep · released about 38 lb of TNT

10 km30 km60 km120 km N Latah County 35 kmBenewah County 36 kmWhitman County 41 kmSpokane County 69 kmKootenai County 74 kmGarfield County 79 kmNez Perce County 83 kmShoshone County 93 kmAsotin County 98 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
9:24 pm PDT on 8 July 2017 ()
Where
37 km (23 mi) NNE of Pullman, WA · earthquakes near Pullman
Magnitude
M 2.1 (ml)
Depth
-0.3 km below the surface
Felt
no reports yet
Nearest
Latah County, 35 km SE
Status
Reviewed by a seismologist

USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 3373 days ago

A magnitude 2.1 earthquake was recorded 37 km (23 mi) NNE of Pullman, WA, at 9:24 pm PDT on 8 July 2017 (04:24 UTC). This was a minor earthquake. Quakes this small are rarely felt and do not cause damage.

Earthquakes near other towns within 30 km: Palouse.

USGS catalogues this as explosion, not an earthquake.

How big was it?

This earthquake released about 38 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 3.1 would have released about 32 times as much.

  1. Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 390,000× the energy of this one
  2. Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 280,000× the energy of this one
  3. Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 25× the energy of this one
  4. This earthquake M 2.1 about 38 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 since 1900 lists no earthquake of M5 or more within 50 km.

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 47.0543, -117.0408. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Nearby places

PlaceDistanceDirection from the epicentre
Latah County, ID 35 km (22 mi) SE earthquakes near Latah County
Benewah County, ID 36 km (22 mi) ENE earthquakes near Benewah County
Whitman County, WA 41 km (25 mi) WSW earthquakes near Whitman County
Spokane County, WA 69 km (43 mi) NNW earthquakes near Spokane County
Kootenai County, ID 74 km (46 mi) NNE earthquakes near Kootenai County
Garfield County, WA 79 km (49 mi) SSW earthquakes near Garfield County

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

Aftershocks so far

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

  1. 2.3 9 km ESE of Princeton, Idaho
  2. 2.3 4 km ENE of Pullman, Washington
  3. 1.8 7 km SSW of Tekoa, Washington
  4. 2.3 5 km SSW of Moscow, Idaho
  5. 1.7 6 km WSW of Troy, Idaho
  6. 1.6 8 km SSE of Pullman, Washington
  7. 1.6 7 km SSE of Saint Maries, Idaho
  8. 1.7 6 km SE of Spangle, Washington
  9. 2.2 8 km SW of Potlatch, Idaho
  10. 1.6 10 km ESE of Moscow, Idaho
  11. 1.9 7 km WSW of Deary, Idaho
  12. 1.9 7 km ENE of Troy, Idaho
  13. 2.1 6 km N of Onaway, Idaho
  14. 2.1 5 km NNE of Pullman, Washington
  15. 2.0 2 km NE of Colfax, 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.