explosion · reviewed by a seismologist
M 1.6md
6 km W of Chilliwack, Canada
No: USGS classifies this as a explosion, not an earthquake. A magnitude 1.6 explosion was recorded 6 km W of Chilliwack, Canada, 55 km (34 mi) NE of Bellingham, WA, at 1:59 pm PST on 20 February 2020 (21:59 UTC), less than 1 km deep.
55 km (34 mi) NE of Bellingham, WA · 133 km (83 mi) N of Everett, WA
- When
- Magnitude
- M 1.6 (md)
- Depth
- -1.0 km below the surface
- Felt
- no reports yet
- Nearest
- Whatcom County, 38 km SSE
- Status
- Reviewed by a seismologist
USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 2454 days ago
Earthquake alerts for Sumas, WA
Get a notification in this browser when USGS records an earthquake near Sumas, 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 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 11 km (7 mi) from the epicentre. 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: Sumas, Peaceful Valley.
USGS catalogues this as explosion, not an earthquake.
How big was it?
This earthquake released about 7.6 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.
- Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 2,000,000× the energy of this one
- Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 1,400,000× the energy of this one
- Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 130× the energy of this one
- This earthquake M 1.6 about 7.6 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.
Where
Epicentre 49.1585, -122.0398. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whatcom County, WA | 38 km (24 mi) | SSE | earthquakes near Whatcom County |
| Skagit County, WA | 76 km (47 mi) | SSE | earthquakes near Skagit County |
| San Juan County, WA | 106 km (66 mi) | SW | earthquakes near San Juan County |
| Island County, WA | 120 km (75 mi) | SSW | earthquakes near Island 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.
- 2.0 22 km E of Glacier, Washington
- 1.5 10 km W of Chilliwack, Canada
- 2.1 5 km SW of Aldergrove, Canada
- 1.7 5 km WSW of Aldergrove, Canada
- 1.6 6 km SW of Chilliwack, Canada
- 1.5 12 km ENE of Mission, Canada
- 1.8 2 km SW of Deming, Washington
- 1.6 11 km ENE of Abbotsford, Canada
- 1.5 6 km ENE of Abbotsford, Canada
- 1.5 5 km ENE of Abbotsford, Canada
- 1.6 Washington
- 1.5 4 km NW of Glacier, Washington
- 1.5 0 km WNW of Sumas, Washington
- 1.6 12 km NE of Abbotsford, Canada
- 1.6 11 km ENE of Abbotsford, Canada
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.