Earthquake No. 19 Strikes N. Texas

STAY TUNED for Important Announcements Concerning the State of Texas Starting Late 2014

M3.1 Strikes near Reno, Texas

Earthquakes in the Stable Continental Region

A magnitude 3.1 earthquake, the 19 to strike northern Texas in the past 24 days,  occurred at 06:39 UTC November 29, 2013 .

• Magnitude: 3.1Mw
• Event Time: 2013-11-29 06:14:10 UTC [2013-11-29 00:14:10 UTC-06:00 at epicenter]
• Location: 32.899°N 97.626°W
• Depth: 5.0km (3.1mi)
• Nearby Cities
  • 6km (4mi) SW of Reno, Texas
  • 7km (4mi) W of Azle, Texas
  • 22km (14mi) NE of Weatherford, Texas
  • 22km (14mi) NW of White Settlement, Texas
  • 285km (177mi) S of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma

Texas and Oklahoma Earthquakes Location Map. Source: USGS/EHP

Texas Earthquakes Location Map. Source: USGS/EHP

List of Texas Earthquakes measuring 2.5Mw or greater since November 6, 2013 [Excludes No. 19, listed above.]  Source: USGS/EHP – Prepared by FIRE-EARTH Blog – Nov. 29, 2013.

Induced Seismicity

As is the case elsewhere in the world, there is evidence that some central and eastern North America earthquakes have been triggered or caused by human activities that have altered the stress conditions in earth’s crust sufficiently to induce faulting. Activities that have induced felt earthquakes in some geologic environments have included

• Impoundment of water behind dams, 
• Injection of fluid into the earth’s crust,
• Extraction of fluid or gas, and
• Removal of rock in mining or quarrying operations.

In much of eastern and central North America, the number of earthquakes suspected of having been induced is much smaller than the number of natural earthquakes, but in some regions, such as the south-central states of the U.S., a significant majority of recent earthquakes are thought by many seismologists to have been human-induced. Even within areas with many human-induced earthquakes, however, the activity that seems to induce seismicity at one location may be taking place at many other locations without inducing felt earthquakes. In addition, regions with frequent induced earthquakes may also be subject to damaging earthquakes that would have occurred independently of human activity. […] —USGS

Related Links

• Two More Quakes Strike North Texas November 29, 2013

• Oil Drilling Likely Caused Texas Earthquake Posted on May 17, 2009
• M3.3 Quake Strikes Azle, Texas Posted on November 25, 2013
• FEWW Earthquake Links