Washington earthquakes

M1.5 earthquake 25 km SW of Nile, Washington

A magnitude 1.5 earthquake struck 25 km SW of Nile, Washington on Thu, Dec 20, 1979, 12:25 AM PST (08:25 UTC), 18 km (11 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M1.7 15 km S of Ellensburg, Washington. This one was a foreshock.

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Map

Where this earthquake was located, with the others nearby. Select one for its page.

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The earthquake

Magnitude
1.5 (md), micro
Local time
UTC
1979-12-20 08:25:51 UTC
Depth
18.4 km (11.4 mi), shallow
Epicenter
46.660° N, 121.185° W
Tsunami flag
No
Status
Reviewed by a seismologist

Did you feel it?

No one has reported feeling this quake to the USGS.

How well it is located

Reviewed by a seismologist.

Location uncertainty
About 20.6 km horizontally, 32.5 km in depth
Magnitude uncertainty
±0.12
Depth from
Operator assigned
Station coverage gap
327°, poorly surrounded by stations
Stations used
4

Nearest places

Distance and direction from each place to the epicenter, with its forecast.

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 1.5 and up: 10 in the 60 days after this one and 3 in the 30 days before it.

After

  1. 1.59 km N of Morton, Washington · 17059 days ago · 15 km deep · 83 km away
  2. 1.510 km N of Morton, Washington · 17059 days ago · 16 km deep · 84 km away
  3. 1.513 km SSW of Leavenworth, Washington · 17058 days ago · 1 km deep · 98 km away
  4. 1.715 km S of Ellensburg, Washington · 17042 days ago · 12 km deep · 56 km away
  5. 2.614 km SSE of Harrah, Washington · 17039 days ago · 4 km deep · 70 km away
  6. 3.515 km NE of Ashford, Washington · 17039 days ago · 8 km deep · 58 km away
  7. 2.412 km W of Snoqualmie Pass, Washington · 17032 days ago · 95 km deep · 86 km away
  8. 3.236 km NE of Amboy, Washington · 17028 days ago · -1 km deep · 93 km away
  9. 1.84 km ESE of Hobart, Washington · 17024 days ago · 22 km deep · 100 km away
  10. 2.16 km W of Ellensburg, Washington · 17019 days ago · 5 km deep · 57 km away

Before

  1. 2.214 km S of Snoqualmie Pass, Washington · 17083 days ago · 3 km deep · 69 km away
  2. 2.23 km WSW of Wilderness Rim, Washington · 17088 days ago · 18 km deep · 98 km away
  3. 3.11 km NE of Gleed, Washington · 17088 days ago · 7 km deep · 45 km away

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Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event uw10851573. Read Tue, Sep 22, 2026, 4:18 PM UTC.