explosion · reviewed by a seismologist
M 1.8ml
Earthquake near Burns, OR
No earthquake was likely felt in Burns in the 24 hours to 4:50 am PST (12:50 UTC). The last one was M 1.6, 10 km (6 mi) N, at 2:25 pm PDT on 25 June 2026, estimated intensity II (weak) in town. Every earthquake near Burns
No: USGS classifies this as a explosion, not an earthquake. A magnitude 1.8 explosion was recorded 13 km (8 mi) north-northeast of Burns, OR, at 2:45 pm PDT on 10 August 2021 (21:45 UTC), less than 1 km deep.
USGS: 13 km NNE of Burns, Oregon
- When
- 2:45 pm PDT on 10 August 2021 ()
- Where
- 13 km (8 mi) north-northeast of Burns, OR · earthquakes near Burns
- Magnitude
- M 1.8 (ml)
- Depth
- -1.4 km below the surface
- Felt
- no reports yet
- Nearest
- Harney County, 70 km S
- Status
- Reviewed by a seismologist
USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 615 days ago
Earthquake alerts for Burns, OR
Get a notification in this browser when USGS records an earthquake near Burns, OR. 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 14 km (9 mi) from the epicentre. In Burns, 13 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: Hines.
USGS catalogues this as explosion, not an earthquake.
How big was it?
This earthquake released about 15 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 2.8 would have released about 32 times as much.
- Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 1,000,000× the energy of this one
- Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 710,000× the energy of this one
- Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 63× the energy of this one
- This earthquake M 1.8 about 15 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 43.6973, -118.9970. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Harney County, OR | 70 km (44 mi) | S | earthquakes near Harney County |
| Grant County, OR | 89 km (55 mi) | N | earthquakes near Grant County |
| Crook County, OR | 122 km (76 mi) | WNW | earthquakes near Crook County |
| Malheur County, OR | 126 km (78 mi) | ESE | earthquakes near Malheur County |
| Wheeler County, OR | 142 km (88 mi) | NW | earthquakes near Wheeler County |
| Lake County, OR | 151 km (94 mi) | SW | earthquakes near Lake County |
Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.
Aftershocks so far
4 earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.
- 1.7 36 km NE of Burns, Oregon
- 1.6 9 km N of Burns, Oregon
- 1.9 2 km WSW of Hines, Oregon
- 1.7 8 km NNE of Burns, 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
- 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.