QuakeIndex

Fault · California

Palos Verdes fault

108 kmlong (67 mi), as mapped
1–5 mm/yrhow fast it slips
< 15,000 yearssince it last broke the surface
45quakes of M2.5+ within 10 km since 2016

In plain English

The two sides move 1 to 5 mm a year — 10 to 50 cm (4 to 20 inches) every century.

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

The largest earthquake recorded near it was M 6.4 in 1933 (The 1933 Long Beach, California Earthquake) — about 130,000 times the energy of an M3.0, the size people start to feel. It released about 60 kilotons of TNT.

USGS maps it as 2 sections: Palos Verdes Hills section, San Pedro Shelf section.

This week vs. its last ten years

94/100

elevated

2 quakes of M1.5+ within 5 km of the trace in the last 7 days — busier than 94% 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 faultElsinore faultSan Jacinto faultNewport-Inglewood-Rose Canyon faultSan Clemente faultHelendale-South Lockhart faultSan Gabriel faultSierra Madre faultSan Diego Trough faultCatalina faultSan Pedro Basin faultMalibu Coast faultSanta Cruz faultDume faultOak Ridge faultSimi-Santa Rosa faultPuente Hills blind thrust systemSanta Monica faultSan Onofre faultSan Joaquin Hills thrustCleghorn faultRaymond faultCarlsbad faultVerdugo faultCarslbad Ridge faultHollywood faultRed Hill-Etiwanda Avenue fault M 6.4 · 1933 · The 1933 Long Beach, California Earthquake
The Palos Verdes fault as mapped at the surface (glowing), with the other mapped faults nearby, 45 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 6.4 The 1933 Long Beach, California Earthquake
    March 11, 1933 · epicentre 13 km from the trace
  2. M 4.3 2km E of Carson, CA
    September 18, 2021 · epicentre 7 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 3.6 6 km WSW of Hermosa Beach, CA
    2026-09-27 · 3 km from the trace
  2. M 3.3 26 km ESE of Avalon, CA
    2026-09-12 · 9 km from the trace
  3. M 3.0 26 km ESE of Avalon, CA
    2026-09-12 · 10 km from the trace
  4. M 2.9 8 km S of Malibu Beach, CA
    2026-05-26 · 7 km from the trace
  5. M 2.7 4 km W of Manhattan Beach, CA
    2026-05-19 · 2 km from the trace
  6. M 3.0 22 km S of San Pedro, CA
    2025-07-22 · 10 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.