QuakeIndex

explosion · reviewed by a seismologist

M 1.6ml

Earthquake near Veneta, OR

USGS: 7 km WNW of Veneta, Oregon

26 km (16 mi) W of Eugene, OR

3:39 pm PDT, Oct 9, 2019 · · -0.3 km deep · released about 7.1 lb of TNT

10 km30 km60 km120 km N Lane County 46 kmBenton County 47 kmLincoln County 74 kmLinn County 86 kmDouglas County 90 kmPolk County 93 kmCoos County 111 kmMarion County 115 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
3:39 pm PDT on 9 October 2019 ()
Where
8 km (5 mi) WNW of Veneta, OR · earthquakes near Veneta
Magnitude
M 1.6 (ml)
Depth
-0.3 km below the surface
Felt
no reports yet
Nearest
Lane County, 46 km ESE
Status
Reviewed by a seismologist

USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 2545 days ago

A magnitude 1.6 earthquake was recorded 8 km (5 mi) WNW of Veneta, OR, at 3:39 pm PDT on 9 October 2019 (22:39 UTC). This was a minor earthquake. Quakes this small are rarely felt and do not cause damage.

Earthquakes near other towns within 30 km: Junction City, Eugene.

USGS catalogues this as explosion, not an earthquake.

How big was it?

This earthquake released about 7.1 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 2,100,000× the energy of this one
  2. Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 1,500,000× the energy of this one
  3. Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 130× the energy of this one
  4. This earthquake M 1.6 about 7.1 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 44.0677, -123.4428. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Nearby places

PlaceDistanceDirection from the epicentre
Lane County, OR 46 km (29 mi) ESE earthquakes near Lane County
Benton County, OR 47 km (29 mi) N earthquakes near Benton County
Lincoln County, OR 74 km (46 mi) NNW earthquakes near Lincoln County
Linn County, OR 86 km (53 mi) ENE earthquakes near Linn County
Douglas County, OR 90 km (56 mi) SSE earthquakes near Douglas County
Polk County, OR 93 km (58 mi) N earthquakes near Polk County

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

Aftershocks so far

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

  1. 1.5 6 km SSE of Monroe, Oregon
  2. 1.8 1 km ESE of Springfield, Oregon
  3. 1.8 5 km SSE of Monroe, Oregon
  4. 1.6 9 km SSW of Cottage Grove, Oregon
  5. 1.6 29 km NE of Florence, Oregon
  6. 1.7 10 km S of Alsea, Oregon
  7. 1.5 3 km S of Brownsville, Oregon
  8. 1.7 2 km SW of Drain, Oregon
  9. 1.7 1 km S of Drain, Oregon
  10. 2.0 3 km SW of Drain, Oregon
  11. 1.7 28 km ESE of Florence, Oregon
  12. 1.6 6 km SSE of Monroe, Oregon
  13. 1.6 6 km SSE of Monroe, Oregon
  14. 1.5 7 km SSW of Cottage Grove, Oregon
  15. 1.6 2 km SW of Drain, Oregon

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.