Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist
M 2.3ml
Earthquake near Ravensdale, WA
No earthquake was likely felt in Ravensdale in the 24 hours to 4:24 am PST (12:24 UTC). The last one was M 2.6, 14 km (9 mi) ENE, at 6:09 pm PDT on 14 October 2026, estimated intensity II (weak) in town; 46 felt reports to USGS. Every earthquake near Ravensdale
This page: a magnitude 2.3 earthquake was recorded 3 km (2 mi) south-southwest of Ravensdale, WA, at 2:41 pm PST on 30 December 2020 (22:41 UTC), 20 km deep. 3 people have reported feeling it to USGS.
USGS: 2 km SSW of Ravensdale, Washington
42 km (26 mi) SE of Seattle, WA · 16 km (10 mi) E of Auburn, WA
- When
- 2:41 pm PST on 30 December 2020 ()
- Where
- 3 km (2 mi) south-southwest of Ravensdale, WA · earthquakes near Ravensdale
- Magnitude
- M 2.3 (ml)
- Depth
- 20 km below the surface
- Felt
- 3 reports · strongest reported intensity II
- Nearest
- King County, 22 km NE
- Nearest mapped fault
- Rattlesnake Mountain fault, 15 km from its surface trace — near is not the same as on
- Status
- Reviewed by a seismologist
USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 2144 days ago
Earthquake alerts for Ravensdale, WA
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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 it was probably too small to be felt, even directly above it. In Ravensdale, 3 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.
Earthquakes near other towns within 30 km: Black Diamond, Maple Valley, Lake Morton-Berrydale, Covington, Hobart, Lea Hill.
How big was it?
This earthquake released about 72 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 3.3 would have released about 32 times as much.
- Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 210,000× the energy of this one
- Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 150,000× the energy of this one
- Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 13× the energy of this one
- This earthquake M 2.3 about 72 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 4 earthquakes of M5 or more within 50 km:
- 6.7 1 km ENE of Dash Point, Washington · 31 km W of this epicentre
- 5.4 8 km NNE of Lake Marcel-Stillwater, Washington · 49 km N of this epicentre
- 5.2 9 km NE of Lake Marcel-Stillwater, Washington · 48 km NNE of this epicentre
- 5.0 3 km WSW of Des Moines, Washington · 28 km WNW 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 47.3320, -121.9987. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| King County, WA | 22 km (13 mi) | NE | earthquakes near King County |
| Pierce County, WA | 33 km (21 mi) | SSW | earthquakes near Pierce County |
| Kitsap County, WA | 60 km (37 mi) | NW | earthquakes near Kitsap County |
| Thurston County, WA | 77 km (48 mi) | SW | earthquakes near Thurston County |
| Snohomish County, WA | 82 km (51 mi) | NNE | earthquakes near Snohomish County |
| Lewis County, WA | 88 km (55 mi) | SSW | earthquakes near Lewis County |
Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.
Aftershocks so far
56 earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.
- 1.8 1 km SW of Snoqualmie, Washington
- 1.6 1 km ESE of Issaquah, Washington
- 1.5 11 km ESE of Enumclaw, Washington
- 1.6 2 km SE of Kapowsin, Washington
- 2.3 0 km SSW of Boulevard Park, Washington
- 2.2 1 km NNE of Carnation, Washington
- 1.8 12 km W of Greenwater, Washington
- 1.5 1 km N of Boulevard Park, Washington
- 1.9 2 km SE of Ravensdale, Washington
- 1.7 1 km WNW of Bonney Lake, Washington
- 1.6 0 km N of Boulevard Park, Washington
- 2.8 0 km S of Boulevard Park, Washington
- 2.1 0 km SSW of Boulevard Park, Washington
- 2.2 2 km SSE of Carnation, Washington
- 1.6 0 km WSW of Boulevard Park, 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.