QuakeIndex

Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist

M 1.7ml

Earthquake near Big Pine, CA

No earthquake was likely felt in Big Pine in the 24 hours to 2:46 am PST (10:46 UTC). The last one was M 1.6, 9 km (6 mi) NNE, at 10:07 am PST on 4 November 2026, estimated intensity II (weak) in town. Every earthquake near Big Pine

This page: a magnitude 1.7 earthquake was recorded 32 km (20 mi) east of Big Pine, CA, at 10:08 pm PST on 5 March 2016 (06:08 UTC), 3.4 km deep.

USGS: 32km E of Big Pine, CA

10:08 pm PST, Mar 5, 2016 · · 3.4 km deep · released about 9.6 lb of TNT

Every earthquake near Big Pine Felt it? Tell USGS Check my area
10 km30 km60 km120 km N Esmeralda County 77 kmInyo County 78 km
Distance rings around the epicentre, with the nearest towns at their true direction and later quakes as coloured dots. Not a shaking map — see the USGS ShakeMap for that.
When
10:08 pm PST on 5 March 2016 ()
Where
32 km (20 mi) east of Big Pine, CA · earthquakes near Big Pine
Magnitude
M 1.7 (ml)
Depth
3.4 km below the surface
Felt
no reports yet
Nearest
Esmeralda County, 77 km NNE
Nearest mapped fault
Deep Springs fault, 15 km from its surface trace — near is not the same as on
Status
Reviewed by a seismologist

USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 3056 days ago

This was a minor earthquake. Quakes this small are rarely felt and do not cause damage.

At this magnitude and depth, people at rest would likely notice it out to about 12 km (7 mi) from the epicentre. In Big Pine, 32 km away, the estimate is intensity I (not felt). Estimated from magnitude, depth and distance with the intensity equation USGS Did You Feel It? uses; felt reports, where there are any, are the measurement.

How big was it?

This earthquake released about 9.6 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 2.7 would have released about 32 times as much.

  1. Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 1,600,000× the energy of this one
  2. Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 1,100,000× the energy of this one
  3. Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 99× the energy of this one
  4. This earthquake M 1.7 about 9.6 lb of TNT

Energy from the Gutenberg–Richter relation (log10E = 1.5M + 4.8), rounded to two figures; bar length is magnitude, which is already a logarithm of energy. Magnitudes of past earthquakes from the USGS catalogue.

For this area

The largest earthquake within 50 km since 2016 was M 4.8 on 2016-02-16 — about 45,000 times the energy of this one.

Before 2016, the USGS record lists 4 earthquakes of M5 or more within 50 km:

  1. 6.1 46km E of Big Pine, California · 14 km ENE of this epicentre
  2. 6.0 Near Bishop, California · 49 km WNW of this epicentre
  3. 5.5 4 km SSW of Bishop, California · 49 km WNW of this epicentre
  4. 5.5 10 km N of Independence, California · 35 km SW of this epicentre

Since 2016: the QuakeIndex catalogue (US, M1.5+), built from the USGS FDSN event service. Before 2016: USGS ComCat, M5+ from 1900. Distances are between epicentres. This is the record, not a forecast.

Where

Epicentre 37.1288, -117.9268. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Nearby places

PlaceDistanceDirection from the epicentre
Esmeralda County, NV 77 km (48 mi) NNE earthquakes near Esmeralda County
Inyo County, CA 78 km (49 mi) SE earthquakes near Inyo County
Mono County, CA 121 km (75 mi) NW earthquakes near Mono County
Tulare County, CA 126 km (78 mi) SW earthquakes near Tulare County

Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.

Aftershocks so far

53 earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.

  1. 1.9 20 km S of Dyer, Nevada
  2. 1.6 California-Nevada border region
  3. 2.2 62km ENE of Big Pine, CA
  4. 1.7 3 km ENE of Wilkerson, California
  5. 1.8 44km ENE of Independence, CA
  6. 2.4 5 km SSE of Wilkerson, California
  7. 1.6 5 km ESE of Wilkerson, California
  8. 1.7 6 km NE of Wilkerson, California
  9. 1.6 20km S of Big Pine, CA
  10. 1.8 28 km NE of Big Pine, California
  11. 1.6 24km ENE of Independence, CA
  12. 1.9 28 km SSE of Dyer, Nevada
  13. 1.7 35 km SE of Dyer, Nevada
  14. 2.2 7km ESE of Independence, CA
  15. 1.6 7km ESE of Independence, CA

Counted from the QuakeIndex database, which ingests the USGS feed every 30 seconds · as of . QuakeIndex does not forecast aftershocks. When USGS issues an operational aftershock forecast it appears on the USGS event page.

On USGS

QuakeIndex does not issue warnings. For earthquake early warning see ShakeAlert.