M1.1 Earthquake near Desert Aire, Washington — 22 May 2026
A micro earthquake of magnitude 1.1 was recorded near Desert Aire, Washington on , with an epicentre 9 km south-southeast of Desert Aire, at a focal depth of 6.5 km.
Time (UTC): 2026-05-22 00:54:10
Time (your timezone): —
Magnitude: 1.1 (micro)
Focal depth: 6.5 km (shallow)
Epicentre: 46.5967, -119.8850
Location: 9 km SSE of Desert Aire, Washington
USGS link to NOAA tsunami information: Not linked
Review status: Reviewed
Source: USGS event page
How strong was this earthquake?
Micro earthquakes are almost never felt at the surface and are recorded only by seismographs.
A magnitude 1.1 earthquake radiates roughly 0.75 kg of TNT equivalent in seismic energy.
The USGS assigns this earthquake a significance score of 20, which is below the USGS threshold of more than 600 for its significant-earthquake list. The ranking combines magnitude with available Did You Feel It responses and PAGER alert level; it is not a direct measurement of damage.
Where was the epicentre?
The epicentre was located at 46.5967, -119.8850 — 9 km south-southeast of Desert Aire. The closest other recorded event was a magnitude 1.2 earthquake 16 km west-southwest of here on 29 June 2026.
Why the 7 km depth matters
At 7 km this was a shallow earthquake. Shallow events release their energy close to the surface, so for a given magnitude they produce noticeably stronger shaking — and more damage — than deeper ones. Roughly three quarters of all earthquakes worldwide occur at shallow depths.
This catalogue does not ingest eyewitness responses, so it cannot confirm where this earthquake was felt. Based on magnitude alone, events this small are usually detected by instruments rather than people. Its shallow focus makes stronger surface shaking more likely than for a deeper event of the same magnitude.
What does the tsunami information flag mean?
The USGS record does not carry a link to NOAA tsunami information. That field is not an all-clear and does not state whether a tsunami occurred. In this case, a damaging tsunami would be less likely because at M1.1 it falls below the magnitude 6.5 threshold that generally applies before a submarine earthquake displaces enough water to generate a damaging tsunami; it occurred inland rather than beneath the sea floor. For an active coastal alert, use tsunami.gov or your local warning authority.
How earthquakes generate tsunamis, and what the alert levels mean →
Aftershocks and local seismic history
No further earthquakes have been recorded within about 150 km of the epicentre in the seven days after this event.
0 earthquakes of magnitude 4 or above have been logged within roughly 200 km of this epicentre in our catalogue. The strongest was a magnitude 3.7 event near Greenwater on 06 April 2025. This M1.1 event released about 6,918 times less energy than that event.
How long aftershock sequences last, and how large they get →
Where this event sits in the record
This earthquake is part of the May 2026 worldwide record. Browse the full monthly archive to compare periods.
Nearest recorded earthquakes to this epicentre
- M1.2 earthquake near Desert Aire, Washington — (16 km WSW)
- M2.0 earthquake near Desert Aire, Washington — (17 km WSW)
- M1.3 earthquake near Ellensburg, Washington — (63 km NW)
- M1.8 earthquake near Ellensburg, Washington — (63 km NW)
- M1.0 earthquake near White Swan, Washington — (63 km WSW)
- M0.7 earthquake near Naches, Washington — (66 km WNW)
- M0.9 earthquake near Harrah, Washington — (66 km SW)
- M0.7 earthquake near Harrah, Washington — (66 km SW)
- M1.4 earthquake near Tampico, Washington — (69 km W)
- M0.8 earthquake near Tieton, Washington — (72 km WNW)
Other magnitude 1 earthquakes worldwide
- M1.2 earthquake near Redwood Valley, CA —
- M1.1 earthquake near The Geysers, CA —
- M0.9 earthquake near Redlands, CA —
- M1.3 earthquake near The Geysers, CA —
- M1.0 earthquake near Cloverdale, CA —
- M1.2 earthquake near Lamont, CA —
- M1.4 earthquake near Ugashik, Alaska —
- M1.4 earthquake near Midland, Texas —
Questions about this earthquake
How strong is a magnitude 1.1 earthquake?
Micro earthquakes are almost never felt at the surface and are recorded only by seismographs. A magnitude 1.1 earthquake radiates roughly 0.75 kg of TNT equivalent in seismic energy.
How deep was the earthquake near Desert Aire?
At 7 km this was a shallow earthquake. Shallow events release their energy close to the surface, so for a given magnitude they produce noticeably stronger shaking — and more damage — than deeper ones. Roughly three quarters of all earthquakes worldwide occur at shallow depths.
Was the M1.1 earthquake near Desert Aire felt?
This catalogue does not ingest eyewitness responses, so it cannot confirm where this earthquake was felt. Based on magnitude alone, events this small are usually detected by instruments rather than people. Its shallow focus makes stronger surface shaking more likely than for a deeper event of the same magnitude.
What does the USGS tsunami field mean for this event?
The USGS record does not carry a link to NOAA tsunami information. That field is not an all-clear and does not state whether a tsunami occurred. In this case, a damaging tsunami would be less likely because at M1.1 it falls below the magnitude 6.5 threshold that generally applies before a submarine earthquake displaces enough water to generate a damaging tsunami; it occurred inland rather than beneath the sea floor. For an active coastal alert, use tsunami.gov or your local warning authority.
Have there been aftershocks?
No further earthquakes have been recorded within about 150 km of the epicentre in the seven days after this event.
How often do earthquakes happen near Desert Aire?
0 earthquakes of magnitude 4 or above have been logged within roughly 200 km of this epicentre in our catalogue. The strongest was a magnitude 3.7 event near Greenwater on 06 April 2025. This M1.1 event released about 6,918 times less energy than that event.