Washington earthquakes

M1.6 earthquake 3 km SSW of Des Moines, Washington

A magnitude 1.6 earthquake struck 3 km SSW of Des Moines, Washington on Tue, Aug 27, 2002, 8:17 AM PDT (15:17 UTC), 21 km (13 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M2.9 4 km ENE of Fall City, Washington. This one was a foreshock.

Des Moines forecastMore in Washington

Map

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

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The earthquake

Magnitude
1.6 (Md, duration), micro
Magnitude from
Pacific Northwest Seismic Network
Local time
UTC
2002-08-27 15:17:05 UTC
Depth
20.7 km (12.9 mi), shallow
Epicenter
47.376° N, 122.347° 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 0.4 km horizontally, 0.5 km in depth
Magnitude uncertainty
±0.04
Depth from
From location
Station coverage gap
113°
Stations used
22

Nearest places

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

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 1.5 and up: 20 in the 60 days after this one and 8 in the 30 days before it.

After

  1. 2.24 km ESE of Longbranch, Washington · 8800 days ago · 54 km deep · 33 km away
  2. 1.85 km E of North Stanwood, Washington · 8796 days ago · 0 km deep · 98 km away
  3. 1.80 km WNW of Maple Valley, Washington · 8789 days ago · 1 km deep · 22 km away
  4. 1.716 km NNE of Ashford, Washington · 8788 days ago · 12 km deep · 61 km away
  5. 1.611 km NE of Snoqualmie, Washington · 8782 days ago · 5 km deep · 53 km away
  6. 2.28 km SSE of Carbonado, Washington · 8781 days ago · 14 km deep · 48 km away
  7. 2.06 km NE of Snoqualmie, Washington · 8779 days ago · 11 km deep · 48 km away
  8. 2.321 km ENE of Ashford, Washington · 8776 days ago · -2 km deep · 73 km away
  9. 1.56 km SE of Mossyrock, Washington · 8774 days ago · 21 km deep · 98 km away
  10. 2.47 km S of Sultan, Washington · 8772 days ago · 7 km deep · 61 km away
  11. 1.618 km SSE of Carbonado, Washington · 8770 days ago · 11 km deep · 58 km away
  12. 1.51 km SSW of Monroe, Washington · 8769 days ago · 1 km deep · 59 km away
  13. 1.613 km SSE of Port Angeles East, Washington · 8766 days ago · 45 km deep · 99 km away
  14. 2.94 km ENE of Fall City, Washington · 8759 days ago · 17 km deep · 45 km away
  15. 2.25 km SW of Clinton, Washington · 8756 days ago · 31 km deep · 64 km away
  16. 1.70 km ESE of Mountlake Terrace, Washington · 8756 days ago · 22 km deep · 46 km away
  17. 1.620 km ENE of Ashford, Washington · 8756 days ago · 8 km deep · 72 km away
  18. 2.09 km NNE of Quilcene, Washington · 8754 days ago · 20 km deep · 69 km away
  19. 2.0Washington · 8749 days ago · 15 km deep · 49 km away
  20. 1.60 km N of White Center, Washington · 8746 days ago · 26 km deep · 16 km away

Before

  1. 1.81 km NNW of Tukwila, Washington · 8801 days ago · 10 km deep · 14 km away
  2. 1.93 km ENE of Granite Falls, Washington · 8804 days ago · -1 km deep · 85 km away
  3. 1.66 km E of Ashford, Washington · 8806 days ago · 7 km deep · 74 km away
  4. 1.85 km SSW of Sultan, Washington · 8817 days ago · 17 km deep · 62 km away
  5. 2.04 km SW of Inglewood-Finn Hill, Washington · 8820 days ago · 21 km deep · 36 km away
  6. 2.02 km WSW of Gorst, Washington · 8825 days ago · 21 km deep · 33 km away
  7. 3.31 km NNE of East Hill-Meridian, Washington · 8828 days ago · 60 km deep · 15 km away
  8. 2.63 km E of Port Hadlock-Irondale, Washington · 8828 days ago · 58 km deep · 78 km away

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Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event uw10576668. Read Thu, Oct 1, 2026, 3:33 AM UTC.