QuakeIndex

Fault · California

Monterey Bay- Tularcitos fault

87 kmlong (54 mi), as mapped
0.2–1 mm/yrhow fast it slips
< 15,000 yearssince it last broke the surface
8quakes of M2.5+ within 10 km since 2016

In plain English

The two sides move 0.2 to 1 mm a year — 2 to 10 cm every century.

Its most recent surface rupture is younger than 15,000 years.

The largest earthquake recorded near it was M 6.3 in 1926 (22 km S of Davenport, California) — about 110,000 times the energy of an M3.0, the size people start to feel. It released about 51 kilotons of TNT.

USGS maps it as 3 sections: Monterey Bay section, Seaside-Monterey section, Tularcitos section.

This week vs. its last ten years

0/100

quiet

0 quakes of M1.5+ within 5 km of the trace in the last 7 days — busier than 0% of weeks since 2016. A normal week: 0–0.

Computed from the USGS catalogue · a description of the past, not a forecast · method

San Andreas faultGreat Valley thrust fault systemSan Gregorio faultCalaveras faultHayward faultGreenville faultZayante-Vergeles faultOrtigalita faultSargent faultMonte Vista-Shannon faultButano faultPfeiffer Point faultEast Monterey Bay faultQuien Sabe faultTres Pinos fault M 6.3 · 1926 · 22 km S of Davenport, California M 6.3 · 1926 · 16 km SW of Davenport, California
The Monterey Bay- Tularcitos fault as mapped at the surface (glowing), with the other mapped faults nearby, 8 of the M2.5+ earthquakes within 10 km of it since 2016 (dots), and the epicentres of the large historic earthquakes recorded near it (rings). Traces: USGS Quaternary Fault and Fold Database. Historic epicentres are estimates.

Every year since 2016

Earthquakes of M2.5+ with an epicentre within 10 km of the mapped trace. Near is not the same as on: some will have slipped on neighbouring faults.

The big ones recorded near it

  1. M 6.3 22 km S of Davenport, California
    October 22, 1926 · epicentre 11 km from the trace
  2. M 6.3 16 km SW of Davenport, California
    October 22, 1926 · epicentre 18 km from the trace

Before 1973 from the USGS ComCat historical catalogue (within 25 km; epicentres of old earthquakes are estimates). Since 2016, M4+ within 10 km.

Most recent near it

  1. M 2.5 16km SSW of Bonny Doon, CA
    2021-10-09 · 6 km from the trace
  2. M 2.8 12km W of Moss Landing, CA
    2021-09-29 · 5 km from the trace
  3. M 3.2 12km W of Moss Landing, CA
    2021-09-22 · 5 km from the trace
  4. M 2.8 16km SSW of Gonzales, CA
    2019-01-02 · 1 km from the trace
  5. M 2.6 23 km SSW of Santa Cruz, California
    2017-01-14 · 5 km from the trace
  6. M 2.8 22 km SSW of Santa Cruz, California
    2017-01-13 · 4 km from the trace

Neighbouring faults

Fault trace, slip rate and age: USGS Quaternary Fault and Fold Database (public domain), simplified for the web. Earthquakes: USGS ComCat. QuakeIndex does not forecast earthquakes; a fault's history describes the past. For early warning use ShakeAlert.