QuakeIndex

Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist

M 1.9ml

Earthquake near Joseph, OR

USGS: 13 km ENE of Joseph, Oregon

3:51 pm PDT, Apr 21, 2020 · · 3.2 km deep · released about 19 lb of TNT

Every earthquake near Joseph Felt it? Tell USGS Check my area
10 km30 km60 km120 km N Wallowa County 26 kmAdams County 73 kmUnion County 74 kmAsotin County 90 kmBaker County 90 kmWashington County 106 kmLewis County 107 kmNez Perce County 108 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
3:51 pm PDT on 21 April 2020 ()
Where
14 km (8 mi) ENE of Joseph, OR · earthquakes near Joseph
Magnitude
M 1.9 (ml)
Depth
3.2 km below the surface
Felt
no reports yet
Nearest
Wallowa County, 26 km NNW
Status
Reviewed by a seismologist

USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 2354 days ago

A magnitude 1.9 earthquake was recorded 14 km (8 mi) ENE of Joseph, OR, at 3:51 pm PDT on 21 April 2020 (22:51 UTC). This was a minor earthquake. Quakes this small are rarely felt and do not cause damage.

Earthquakes near other towns within 30 km: Enterprise.

How big was it?

This earthquake released about 19 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 2.9 would have released about 32 times as much.

  1. Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 810,000× the energy of this one
  2. Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 580,000× the energy of this one
  3. Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 51× the energy of this one
  4. This earthquake M 1.9 about 19 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 45.3813, -117.0593. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Nearby places

PlaceDistanceDirection from the epicentre
Wallowa County, OR 26 km (16 mi) NNW earthquakes near Wallowa County
Adams County, ID 73 km (45 mi) SE earthquakes near Adams County
Union County, OR 74 km (46 mi) W earthquakes near Union County
Asotin County, WA 90 km (56 mi) N earthquakes near Asotin County
Baker County, OR 90 km (56 mi) SSW earthquakes near Baker County
Washington County, ID 106 km (66 mi) SSE earthquakes near Washington County

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

Aftershocks so far

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

  1. 1.5 3 km SSE of Wallowa, Oregon
  2. 2.1 17 km NNW of Halfway, Oregon
  3. 2.1 19 km NNW of Halfway, Oregon
  4. 1.6 13 km SW of Lostine, Oregon
  5. 2.7 21 km NW of Halfway, Oregon
  6. 1.6 21 km ESE of Cove, Oregon
  7. 2.0 33 km NE of Halfway, Oregon
  8. 2.0 15 km WSW of Lostine, Oregon
  9. 2.0 15 km WSW of Lostine, Oregon
  10. 2.2 15 km WSW of Lostine, Oregon
  11. 2.7 12 km WSW of Lostine, Oregon
  12. 1.7 12 km WSW of Lostine, Oregon
  13. 2.4 15 km WSW of Lostine, Oregon
  14. 1.8 14 km WSW of Lostine, Oregon
  15. 1.6 38 km NE of Halfway, 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.