Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist
M 2.7ml
Earthquake near Morton, WA
No earthquake was likely felt in Morton in the 24 hours to 9:54 pm PST (05:54 UTC). The last one was M 4.2, 100 km (62 mi) NNW, at 2:05 pm PDT on 29 September 2026, estimated intensity II (weak) in town; 9,329 felt reports to USGS. Every earthquake near Morton
This page: a magnitude 2.7 earthquake was recorded 37 km (23 mi) south-southeast of Morton, WA, at 12:39 am PST on 3 January 2018 (08:39 UTC), 9.8 km deep. 19 people have reported feeling it to USGS.
USGS: 37 km SSE of Morton, Washington
92 km (57 mi) NNE of Portland, OR
- When
- 12:39 am PST on 3 January 2018 ()
- Where
- 37 km (23 mi) south-southeast of Morton, WA · earthquakes near Morton
- Magnitude
- M 2.7 (ml)
- Depth
- 9.8 km below the surface
- Felt
- 19 reports · strongest reported intensity III
- Nearest
- Skamania County, 27 km SSE
- Status
- Reviewed by a seismologist
USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 3156 days ago
Earthquake alerts for Morton, WA
Get a notification in this browser when USGS records an earthquake near Morton, WA. 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 23 km (14 mi) from the epicentre. In Morton, 37 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.
How big was it?
This earthquake released about 360 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 3.7 would have released about 32 times as much.
- Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 42,000× the energy of this one
- Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 30,000× the energy of this one
- Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 2.6× the energy of this one
- This earthquake M 2.7 about 360 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 16 earthquakes of M5 or more within 50 km; the five largest:
- 5.7 38 km NNE of Amboy, Washington · 11 km WSW of this epicentre
- 5.2 37 km NNE of Amboy, Washington · 12 km WSW of this epicentre
- 5.2 23 km S of Morton, Washington · 17 km NW of this epicentre
- 5.1 28 km ENE of Amboy, Washington · 26 km S of this epicentre
- 5.1 Washington · 9 km WSW 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 46.2568, -122.0587. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Skamania County, WA | 27 km (17 mi) | SSE | earthquakes near Skamania County |
| Lewis County, WA | 43 km (27 mi) | NW | earthquakes near Lewis County |
| Cowlitz County, WA | 48 km (30 mi) | W | earthquakes near Cowlitz County |
| Clark County, WA | 63 km (39 mi) | SSW | earthquakes near Clark County |
| Multnomah County, OR | 84 km (52 mi) | SSW | earthquakes near Multnomah County |
| Columbia County, OR | 86 km (54 mi) | WSW | earthquakes near Columbia County |
Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.
Aftershocks so far
53 earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.
- 1.6 4 km W of Mossyrock, Washington
- 1.6 6 km SSW of Morton, Washington
- 2.2 23 km S of Morton, Washington
- 1.8 23 km SSE of Mossyrock, Washington
- 1.8 24 km N of Amboy, Washington
- 1.8 23 km SSE of Mossyrock, Washington
- 1.8 23 km SSE of Mossyrock, Washington
- 1.8 12 km NNW of Amboy, Washington
- 1.6 Washington
- 1.7 8 km S of Morton, Washington
- 2.1 Washington
- 1.7 23 km NNE of Amboy, Washington
- 1.6 24 km NNW of Carson, Washington
- 1.8 12 km SE of Mossyrock, Washington
- 1.5 25 km S of Mossyrock, 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
- 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.