Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist
M 1.7ml
Earthquake near Lake Los Angeles, CA
USGS: 15km NW of Lake Los Angeles, CA
87 km (54 mi) NNE of Los Angeles, CA · 19 km (12 mi) NE of Palmdale, CA
- When
- 10:57 am PDT on 13 August 2016 ()
- Where
- 15 km (9 mi) NW of Lake Los Angeles, CA · earthquakes near Lake Los Angeles
- Magnitude
- M 1.7 (ml)
- Depth
- 11 km below the surface
- Felt
- no reports yet
- Nearest
- Los Angeles County, 63 km SSW
- Nearest mapped fault
- San Andreas fault, 20 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 3700 days ago
A magnitude 1.7 earthquake was recorded 15 km (9 mi) NW of Lake Los Angeles, CA, at 10:57 am PDT on 13 August 2016 (17:57 UTC). This was a minor earthquake. Quakes this small are rarely felt and do not cause damage.
Earthquakes near other towns within 30 km: Sun Village, Lancaster, Littlerock, Palmdale, Desert View Highlands, Edwards Air Force Base.
How big was it?
This earthquake released about 12 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.
- Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 1,200,000× the energy of this one
- Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 870,000× the energy of this one
- Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 78× the energy of this one
- This earthquake M 1.7 about 12 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
No earthquake of M4 or more has been recorded within 50 km since our catalogue begins in 2016.
Before 2016, the USGS record lists 5 earthquakes of M5 or more within 50 km:
- 6.6 1971 San Fernando Earthquake, California · 50 km SW of this epicentre
- 5.8 10km SSW of Agua Dulce, CA · 50 km SW of this epicentre
- 5.8 10km SSW of Agua Dulce, CA · 50 km SW of this epicentre
- 5.8 The 1991 Sierra Madre, California Earthquake · 48 km S of this epicentre
- 5.3 10km SSW of Agua Dulce, CA · 50 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 34.6990, -117.9510. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles County, CA | 63 km (39 mi) | SSW | earthquakes near Los Angeles County |
| Kern County, CA | 101 km (63 mi) | NW | earthquakes near Kern County |
| Ventura County, CA | 115 km (71 mi) | WSW | earthquakes near Ventura County |
| Orange County, CA | 115 km (71 mi) | S | earthquakes near Orange County |
Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.
Aftershocks so far
44 earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.
- 1.8 6km NNW of Boron, CA
- 1.7 6km NNW of Boron, CA
- 1.7 5km NNW of Boron, CA
- 1.6 4km NW of Boron, CA
- 1.7 5km NW of Boron, CA
- 1.6 7km WSW of Wrightwood, CA
- 1.9 5km NW of Boron, CA
- 1.6 5km NW of Boron, CA
- 1.6 5km NW of Boron, CA
- 1.6 8km N of Lancaster, CA
- 1.5 5km NNW of Boron, CA
- 1.5 5km SE of Mojave, CA
- 1.9 7km S of Pearblossum, CA
- 1.5 7km S of Pearblossum, CA
- 1.8 8km SSW of Pearblossum, 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
- The official USGS event page — the source of record for every value above
- Did you feel it? Report it to USGS — reports go to USGS, not to us
- ShakeMap for this event, when USGS has produced one
QuakeIndex does not issue warnings. For earthquake early warning see ShakeAlert.