Montana earthquakes

M3.3 earthquake 17 km S of Whitehall, Montana

A magnitude 3.3 earthquake struck 17 km S of Whitehall, Montana on Mon, Jul 23, 2018, 10:56 PM MDT (04:56 UTC), 10 km (6 mi) below the surface.

Whitehall forecastMore in Montana

Map

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

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The earthquake

Magnitude
3.3 (Mwr, regional moment), minor
Magnitude from
USGS National Earthquake Information Center
Local time
UTC
2018-07-24 04:56:10 UTC
Depth
10.3 km (6.4 mi), shallow
Epicenter
45.712° N, 112.121° W
Region
Montana
Felt reports
14
Strongest shaking
IV, light shaking
Tsunami flag
No
Status
Reviewed by a seismologist

Magnitude estimates

Different scales measure different things and differ by a few tenths. The USGS marks one as preferred, and it is the one this page uses.

Mag.ScaleComputed byNotes
3.3Mwr, regional momentUSGS National Earthquake Information CenterPreferred · Reviewed · 6 stations
3.68ML, local (Richter)Montana Bureau of Mines and GeologyFinal · ±0.26 · 33 stations

Shaking

The USGS ShakeMap: shaking estimated from seismic stations and the quake’s size, on the Modified Mercalli intensity scale.

Strongest estimated
IV, light shaking
Peak ground acceleration
57.0% of gravity
Peak ground velocity
0.6 cm/s
Map
Automatic
USGS ShakeMap: estimated shaking intensity around the epicenter
Estimated shaking intensity. Map: USGS ShakeMap.

Did you feel it?

14 people reported to the USGS what they felt; the strongest reported shaking was V, moderate shaking.

Did You Feel It? map: shaking reported by the public
Shaking reported by the public, by area. Map: USGS Did You Feel It?

Fault motion and ground failure

How the rock slipped, from the moment tensor, and the USGS estimate of landslides and liquefaction.

Faulting
Oblique reverse
Moment magnitude
3.3 Mwr
Nodal plane 1
Strike 68°, dip 80°, rake 129°
Nodal plane 2
Strike 170°, dip 40°, rake 15°

How well it is located

Reviewed by a seismologist.

Location uncertainty
About 2.3 km horizontally, 4.7 km in depth
Depth from
From location
Station coverage gap
85°
Stations used
29

Nearest places

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

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 1.5 and up: 17 in the 60 days after this one and 4 in the 30 days before it.

After

Before

Earthquakes todayMontana earthquakesLive radar here

Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event us2000gccd (also filed as mb80303179). Read Sun, Oct 4, 2026, 7:08 PM UTC.