M4.0 Earthquake 31 km NNE of Banff, Canada — October 16, 2026
2026-10-16 10:46:48 UTC (3 hours ago) · approx. 2:46 AM UTC-8 local
Felt by 18 people across nearby locations.
On October 16, 2026 at 10:46 UTC, a magnitude 4.0 shallow crustal earthquake struck 31 km NNE of Banff, Canada, at a depth of 8.3 km and coordinates 51.4534°, -115.4536°. The earthquake was reported felt by 18 peopleacross nearby locations, with a maximum shaking intensity of Modified Mercalli Intensity (MMI) 3.8 (light). The USGS PAGER system issued a green alert level for this event, indicating no significant casualties or damage expected. This earthquake was detected by 42 seismic stations with excellent location accuracy and was assigned a USGS significance rating of 253, placing it among routine seismic activity. The nearest populated place is Banff (population 7,847).
Physical scale: An earthquake of magnitude 4.0 releases seismic energy equivalent to roughly 15 metric tons of TNT. Empirical fault-scaling laws (Wells & Coppersmith, 1994) estimate the subsurface rupture length at approximately 347 m — a useful intuition for the size of the slip patch on the fault.
Nearest Populated Places
ShakeMap — predicted shaking intensity
Modeled ground-motion intensity contoured on the Modified Mercalli scale (MMI). Computed by the USGS from the moment-tensor solution and regional ground-motion prediction equations.
Source: U.S. Geological Survey ShakeMap. View interactive ShakeMap on USGS
Did You Feel It? — community-reported shaking
Aggregated felt-report intensity from 18 citizen responses to the USGS Did You Feel It? system. Each colored zone represents the average MMI from reports in that area.
Source: U.S. Geological Survey Did You Feel It?. View on USGS · submit your own report
Population exposure (USGS PAGER)
Estimated population that experienced each level of shaking. Based on the USGS PAGER rapid impact assessment, which combines ShakeMap output with global population grids.
| Shaking intensity (MMI) | Description | Population exposed |
|---|---|---|
| MMI 3 | weak | 79 |
Earthquake Details
-115.4536°E
Technical Information
Common Questions
How strong was the magnitude 4.0 earthquake near Banff, Canada?
The magnitude 4.0 earthquake that struck 31 km NNE of Banff, Canada on October 16, 2026 at 10:46 UTC had a depth of 8.3 km. It was felt by 18 people with maximum shaking intensity of MMI 3.8 (light). For context, this was a light earthquake commonly felt near the epicenter.
Where did the earthquake occur?
The earthquake epicenter was located at 51.4534°, -115.4536°, which is 31 km NNE of Banff, Canada. The nearest populated place is Banff (population 7,847).
Were there aftershocks?
Aftershock activity is monitored continuously by the USGS. Aftershock sequences from magnitude 4.0 earthquakes can continue for several days and gradually diminish over time.
Authoritative source: USGS event page (event ID: us6000u2pb). All scientific values on this page are sourced verbatim from the USGS feed.
Cite this page: EarthquakeTracker.org. (2026, October 16, 2026). M4.0 Earthquake 31 km NNE of Banff, Canada — October 16, 2026. Retrieved October 16, 2026 from https://www.earthquaketracker.org/earthquakes/event/us6000u2pb/