QuakeIndex

Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist

M 2.1ml

Earthquake near Costa Mesa, CA

No earthquake was likely felt in Costa Mesa in the 24 hours to 10:18 pm PST (06:18 UTC). The last one was M 3.2, 29 km (18 mi) WNW, at 12:44 am PDT on 9 October 2026, estimated intensity II (weak) in town; 1,090 felt reports to USGS. Every earthquake near Costa Mesa

This page: a magnitude 2.1 earthquake was recorded 5 km (3 mi) northwest of Costa Mesa, CA, at 4:47 pm PDT on 5 November 2016 (23:47 UTC), 13 km deep. 6 people have reported feeling it to USGS.

USGS: 4km W of Costa Mesa, CA

in Costa Mesa, CA · 57 km (36 mi) SE of Los Angeles, CA

4:47 pm PDT, Nov 5, 2016 · · 13 km deep · released about 41 lb of TNT

Every earthquake near Costa Mesa Felt it? Tell USGS Check my area
10 km30 km60 km120 km N Orange County 17 kmLos Angeles County 65 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
4:47 pm PDT on 5 November 2016 ()
Where
5 km (3 mi) northwest of Costa Mesa, CA · earthquakes near Costa Mesa
Magnitude
M 2.1 (ml)
Depth
13 km below the surface
Felt
6 reports · strongest reported intensity II
Nearest
Orange County, 17 km E
Nearest mapped fault
Newport-Inglewood-Rose Canyon fault, under 1 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 1464 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 11 km (7 mi) from the epicentre. In Costa Mesa, 5 km away, the estimate is intensity II (weak). 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.

Likely felt in: Huntington Beach 4 km, intensity II · Fountain Valley 5 km, intensity II · Costa Mesa 5 km, intensity II · Newport Beach 6 km, intensity II. Estimated for each town centre; each link is that town's own record.

How big was it?

This earthquake released about 41 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 3.1 would have released about 32 times as much.

  1. Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 370,000× the energy of this one
  2. Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 260,000× the energy of this one
  3. Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 23× the energy of this one
  4. This earthquake M 2.1 about 41 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 10 earthquakes of M5 or more within 50 km; the five largest:

  1. 6.4 The 1933 Long Beach, California Earthquake · 6 km SW of this epicentre
  2. 5.9 The 1987 Whittier Narrows, California Earthquake · 45 km NNW of this epicentre
  3. 5.4 5km S of Chino Hills, CA · 36 km NNE of this epicentre
  4. 5.3 7km W of Newport Beach, CA · 6 km SW of this epicentre
  5. 5.2 8km ENE of Trabuco Canyon, CA · 41 km E 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 33.6682, -117.9567. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Nearby places

PlaceDistanceDirection from the epicentre
Orange County, CA 17 km (10 mi) E earthquakes near Orange County
Los Angeles County, CA 65 km (40 mi) NNW earthquakes near Los Angeles County
San Diego County, CA 131 km (81 mi) ESE earthquakes near San Diego County
Ventura County, CA 133 km (83 mi) NW earthquakes near Ventura County

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

Aftershocks so far

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

  1. 2.7 9 km SW of Corona, California
  2. 1.8 9 km SSW of Rancho Palos Verdes, California
  3. 1.7 2 km N of East La Mirada, California
  4. 1.9 2 km N of East La Mirada, California
  5. 1.6 3 km SE of Sunset Beach, California
  6. 1.6 7km SSE of Home Gardens, CA
  7. 2.1 2km SE of Brea, CA
  8. 1.7 10km WNW of Corona, CA
  9. 2.0 19km NNW of Avalon, CA
  10. 1.6 2km WSW of Lakewood, CA
  11. 1.6 2km SE of Hawthorne, CA
  12. 2.4 10km S of Rancho Palos Verdes, CA
  13. 1.6 4km SE of Home Gardens, CA
  14. 1.9 2km NW of Willowbrook, CA
  15. 1.6 3km WSW of Compton, 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.