M1.4 Earthquake near Bishop, United States — 17 January 2025
A micro earthquake of magnitude 1.4 was recorded near Bishop, United States on , with an epicentre 23 km south-southeast of Dyer, at a focal depth of 1.9 km. It ranked as the 2635th strongest of 6157 earthquakes recorded in the United States in the preceding 30 days.
Time (UTC): 2025-01-17 04:07:35
Time (your timezone): —
Magnitude: 1.4 (micro)
Focal depth: 1.9 km (shallow)
Epicentre: 37.4918, -117.9200
Location: 23 km SSE of Dyer, Nevada
Country: United States
USGS link to NOAA tsunami information: Not linked
Review status: Automatic
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 1.4 earthquake radiates roughly 1.9 kg of TNT equivalent in seismic energy.
The USGS assigns this earthquake a significance score of 30, 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 37.4918, -117.9200 — 23 km south-southeast of Dyer. The closest other recorded event was a magnitude 1.8 earthquake 16 km east-northeast of here on 27 July 2026.
Why the 2 km depth matters
At 2 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 M1.4 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
57 further earthquakes have been recorded within about 150 km of the epicentre in the seven days after this event, the largest of them magnitude 3.9.
25 earthquakes of magnitude 4 or above have been logged within roughly 200 km of this epicentre in our catalogue. The strongest was a magnitude 5.9 event near Dayton on 04 December 2025. This M1.4 event released about 5.6 million 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 January 2025 worldwide record, and of earthquakes in the United States during January 2025. Browse the full monthly archive to compare periods.
Nearest recorded earthquakes to this epicentre
- M1.8 earthquake near Silver Peak, Nevada — (16 km ENE)
- M2.3 earthquake near Silver Peak, Nevada — (16 km ENE)
- M2.8 earthquake near Wilkerson, CA — (42 km SW)
- M1.6 earthquake near Goldfield, Nevada — (47 km ESE)
- M1.7 earthquake near Round Valley, CA — (58 km W)
- M1.5 earthquake near Independence, California — (63 km SSE)
- M1.7 earthquake near Goldfield, Nevada — (63 km ENE)
- M1.5 earthquake near Toms Place, CA — (71 km W)
- M1.6 earthquake near Benton, California — (73 km NW)
- M1.6 earthquake near Mina, Nevada — (76 km N)
Other recent earthquakes in the United States
- M0.2 earthquake near Geyserville, United States —
- M0.2 earthquake near Geyserville, United States —
- M1.1 earthquake near Geyserville, United States —
- M1.3 earthquake near Geyserville, United States —
- M0.7 earthquake near Geyserville, United States —
- M2.1 earthquake near Middletown, United States —
- M1.3 earthquake near Ridgecrest, United States —
- M1.3 earthquake near Brea, United States —
- M1.9 earthquake near Kenai, United States —
- M1.5 earthquake near Ridgecrest, United States —
Other magnitude 1 earthquakes worldwide
- M1.5 earthquake near Jal, New Mexico —
- M1.3 earthquake near Yorba Linda, CA —
- M1.4 earthquake near Cloverdale, CA —
- M1.6 earthquake near Pedro Bay, Alaska —
- M1.5 earthquake near Lamont, CA —
- M1.6 earthquake near Progreso, B.C., MX —
- M1.1 earthquake near Garden City, Texas —
- M1.5 earthquake near Progreso, B.C., MX —
Questions about this earthquake
How strong is a magnitude 1.4 earthquake?
Micro earthquakes are almost never felt at the surface and are recorded only by seismographs. A magnitude 1.4 earthquake radiates roughly 1.9 kg of TNT equivalent in seismic energy.
How deep was the earthquake near Bishop?
At 2 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 M1.4 earthquake near Bishop 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 M1.4 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?
57 further earthquakes have been recorded within about 150 km of the epicentre in the seven days after this event, the largest of them magnitude 3.9.
How often do earthquakes happen near Bishop?
25 earthquakes of magnitude 4 or above have been logged within roughly 200 km of this epicentre in our catalogue. The strongest was a magnitude 5.9 event near Dayton on 04 December 2025. This M1.4 event released about 5.6 million times less energy than that event.