Shallow M4.8 Earthquake hit near Midland in The United States on Friday Afternoon.

Written by Earthquakelist.org on February 28th, 2025. Last updated March 6th, 2025.

Under land 27 miles from Midland in The United States, a shallow Magnitude 4.8 earthquake occurred in the early afternoon of Friday February 28th, 2025. Roughly 1.4 million people may have felt this earthquake.

Earthquake Summary

The earthquake struck on land in The United States, 27 miles (44 km) north-northeast of Midland in Texas. The center of this earthquake had a very shallow depth of 4 km. Shallow earthquakes usually have a larger impact than earthquakes deep in the earth.

Date and Time:	Feb 28, 2025 01:33PM (Chicago Time) - Feb 28, 2025 19:33 Universal Time.
Location:	27 mi NNE of Midland, Texas, The United States. Coordinates 32°22'12"N 101°55'34"W.
Map:	Map of area around epicenter. Click to open in Google Maps.
Magnitude:	MAG 4.8 Detected by 29 stations. Maximum Error Range ±0.058 .
Depth:	4 mi (7 km) A very shallow depth.
Max. Intensity:	VI Strong On the Modified Mercalli Scale.
Tsunami Risk:	Tsunami very unlikely While this was a shallow earthquake, it appears to have occurred under land with a magnitude not strong enough to cause tsunami's. Always stay cautious - More info here.

Minimal impact predicted

Based on scientific estimates by the US Geographic Survey (USGS), the risk of high fatalities for this earthquake is classified at level GREEN (low). They expect an 65% likelyhood of between 0 and 1 fatalities, and a 96% chance that the number of fatalities falls no higher than 10.

The USGS classifies the economic impact of this earthquake at level GREEN (low). They expect an 65% likelyhood of between 0 and 1 million US Dollars in economic damage and impact, and a 96% chance that the economic impact of this earthquake falls no higher than 10 million USD.

Roughly 1.4 million people exposed to shaking

An estimated 1.4 million have been exposed to shaking (An MMI or Modified Mercalli Intensity level II or higher) as a result of this earthquake according scientific estimates published by the USGS.

The highest earthquake impact level for this earthquake is V, which corresponds with moderate shaking and very light damage. Roughly 1,280 people are expected to be exposed to this level. Intensity level IV was experienced by the majority of people (around 690 thousand). In their region, light shaking and likely no damage can be expected.

People	MMI Level	Shaking	Damage
0	I	Not noticable	None
0	II	Very weak	None
672,100	III	Weak	Probably none
690,300	IV	Light	Likely none
1,280	V	Moderate	Very light
0	VI	Strong	Light
0	VII	Very Strong	Moderate
0	VIII	Severe	Moderate to heavy
0	IX	Violent	Heavy
0	X	Extreme	Very heavy

Nearby towns and cities

This earthquake may have been felt in The United States . Big Spring in Texas, The United States is the nearest significant place from the epicenter. The earthquake occurred 27 miles (44 km) west-northwest of Big Spring. Big Spring experienced an earthquake intensity (MMI Scale) of roughly IV. That level implies light shaking and likely no damage.

Major cities near this earthquake: Midland is located 27 mi to the south-southwest and experienced an intensity of IV (light shaking, likely no damage). Lubbock is located 83 mi to the north and experienced an intensity of III (weak shaking, probably no damage). Odessa is located 45 mi to the southwest and experienced an intensity of IV (light shaking, likely no damage).

An overview of nearby towns and cities is available in the overview below. If places don't have intensity data available, it likely means the experienced impact in those places was fairly small.

Overview of nearby places

Cities and Towns around the epicenter of this earthquake.
Distance	Place	Intensity (MMI)
27 mi (44 km) SSW from epicenter	Midland Texas, The United States.	IV Light
27 mi (44 km) ESE from epicenter	Big Spring Texas, The United States.	IV Light
45 mi (72 km) SW from epicenter	Odessa Texas, The United States.	IV Light
50 mi (80 km) SW from epicenter	West Odessa Texas, The United States.	IV Light
74 mi (119 km) WNW from epicenter	Hobbs New Mexico, The United States.	III Weak
83 mi (134 km) N from epicenter	Lubbock Texas, The United States.	III Weak
107 mi (173 km) SE from epicenter	San Angelo Texas, The United States.	III Weak
126 mi (203 km) N from epicenter	Plainview Texas, The United States.
128 mi (206 km) E from epicenter	Abilene Texas, The United States.	IV Light
134 mi (216 km) W from epicenter	Carlsbad New Mexico, The United States.
159 mi (256 km) NNW from epicenter	Clovis New Mexico, The United States.
167 mi (268 km) WNW from epicenter	Roswell New Mexico, The United States.
171 mi (275 km) N from epicenter	Hereford Texas, The United States.
178 mi (286 km) ESE from epicenter	Brownwood Texas, The United States.

Earthquake Intensity Map

The intensity in shaking and damage by this earthquake is illustrated through the map below. The highest intensity measured for this earthquake is V.

I Not felt

II Weak

III Weak

IV Light

V Moderate

VI Strong

VII Very Strong

VIII Severe

IX Violent

X Extreme

Earthquake Intensity Map based on Shakemap Data provided by USGS.

Aftershocks detected

After this earthquake struck, 1 smaller aftershock occurred. At a distance of 17 mi (27 km) east of this earthquake, an aftershock struck 2 hrs later. It measured a magnitude of 2.6

This main shock was prefaced by 1 smaller foreshock. A 3.4 magnitude earthquake hit 2 days earlier nearby.

Overview of foreshocks and aftershocks

Detected MAG2.5+ earthquakes within within 100km (62 mi), that occurred in the three days before and after the main shock.
Classification	Magnitude	When	Where
Foreshock	M 3.4	2 days earlier Feb 26, 2025 11:31PM (Chicago Time)	8 mi (13 km) WNW from Main Shock.
Main Shock This Earthquake	M 4.8	Feb 28, 2025 01:33PM (Chicago Time)	-
Aftershock	M 2.6	2 hrs later Feb 28, 2025 03:47PM (Chicago Time)	17 mi (27 km) E from Main Shock.

More earthquakes coming?

Earthquakes can create aftershocks. These are generally at least 1 magnitude lower than any main shock, and as time passes the chance and strength of aftershocks decreases.

It's always adviced to be cautious of the risk of a larger shock following any significant earthquake, however this risk is fairly small. There is a roughly 94 percent change that no larger main shock will follow in the days following this earthquake.

Read: How to Stay Safe during an Earthquake (cdc.gov).

Earthquakes like this are common in the region

Earthquakes of this strength occur quite regularly in the region. This is the strongest earthquake to hit since February 15th, 2025, when a 5 magnitude earthquake hit 141 mi (227 km) further west-southwest. An even stronger magnitude 5.4 earthquake struck on November 16th, 2022.

In total, 9 earthquakes with a magnitude of 4.8 or higher have been registered within 300km (186 mi) of this epicenter in the past 10 years. This comes down to an average of once every year.

Tsunami very unlikely

DISCLAIMER: We strongly suggest to closely monitor advice from local authorities with regards to tsunami risks. Our analysis is based on automatically collected data from external sources, and these might contain mistakes. In addition, earthquakes can cause landslides that may lead to a tsunami, or be a followed by another, potentially stonger, earthquake.

While MAG-6.5+ earthquakes may cause tsunami's, it appears that the epicenter of this earthquake hit under land. In addition, the reported depth is deeper than 100km, making the risk of a tsunami even less likely. However always stay cautious and monitor advice from local authorities.

Tsunami Risk Factors

Factor	Under Sea?	MAG-6.5 or stronger?	Shallow depth?
Explanation	Almost all tsunami's are caused by earthquakes with their epicenter under sea or very near the sea. However stay cautious in coastal areas as earthquakes on land may cause landslides into sea, potentially still causing a local tsunami.	Under MAG 6.5: Very unlikely to cause a tsunami. MAG 6.5 to 7.5: Destructive tsunami's do occur, but are uncommon. Likely to observe small sea level changes. MAG 7.6+: Earthquakes with these magnitudes might produce destructive tsunami's.	Most destructive tsunami's are caused by shallow earthquakes with a depth between 0 and 100km under the surface of the earth. Deeper tsunami's are unlikely to displace to ocean floor.
This Earthquake	Not this earthquake. This earthquake appears to have struck on land far from any coast.	Not this earthquake. This earthquake had a magnitude of 4.8. Earthquakes of this strength are unlikely to trigger a tsunami.	This earthquake occurred at a depth of of 4 mi (7 km). Earthquakes this shallow could trigger a tsunami.

Sources

Last updated 06/03/25 00:08 (). As more information on this earthquake becomes available this article will be updated. This article is automatically composed based on data originating from multiple sources.