Moderate M 4.2 earthquake shakes Nevada

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Thursday, January 23, 2003

A light earthquake registering M 4.2 occurred this afternoon in a remote area of west-central Nevada, but there have been no reports of damage or injuries.

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According to the Nevada Seismological Laboratory (NSL) the earthquake measured M 4.2 occurred at 21:49:27 GMT or 1:49 p.m. PST, January 23, about 59 miles northeast of Fallon and 40 miles southeast of Lovelock along the eastern flank of the Stillwater Range in northern Dixie Valley, near the Churchill-Pershing County line at the mouth of Cottonwood Canyon. See a Topozone topographic map or a MapQuest street map.

The focal depth was 6.3 km (3.9 miles) and we do not have a fault plane solution for this event at this time.

Foreshocks and aftershocks
No foreshocks or aftershocks have been recorded at this time.

Felt Reports
The quake was sharply felt at Fallon but there have been no reports of damage or injuries at this time.

Did you feel this quake? Where were you and what were you doing? Send us a note.

This was the first M 4.0+ earthquake in Nevada in seven months and since a M 4.4 struck the Nevada Test Site in June 2002. Dixie Valley was the site of a powerful M 7.1 earthquake series in 1954.

Additional seismic information links:
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• Seismo-Watch - links for Nevada
• ANSS Map of Recent Earthquake Activity in the USA
• USGS Preliminary Earthquake Page.
• USGS Community Intensity Report
• Nevada Seismological Laboratory

Mainstream media news reports:
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• No reports at time Report update: 9:32:25 PM, Thursday, January 23, 2003