Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist
M 3.4ml
Earthquake near Tehachapi, CA
No earthquake was likely felt in Tehachapi in the 24 hours to 3:31 pm PST (23:31 UTC). The last one was M 4.3, 61 km (38 mi) ENE, at 9:40 am PDT on 13 July 2026, estimated intensity III (weak) in town; 1,090 felt reports to USGS. Every earthquake near Tehachapi
This page: a magnitude 3.4 earthquake was recorded 19 km (12 mi) north-northwest of Tehachapi, CA, at 3:36 am PST on 17 February 2019 (11:36 UTC), 6.9 km deep. 125 people have reported feeling it to USGS.
USGS: 19km NNW of Tehachapi, CA
46 km (29 mi) E of Bakersfield, CA · 141 km (88 mi) N of Los Angeles, CA
- When
- 3:36 am PST on 17 February 2019 ()
- Where
- 19 km (12 mi) north-northwest of Tehachapi, CA · earthquakes near Tehachapi
- Magnitude
- M 3.4 (ml)
- Depth
- 6.9 km below the surface
- Felt
- 125 reports · strongest reported intensity IV
- Nearest
- Kern County, 19 km WNW
- Nearest mapped fault
- Edison fault, 8 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 2685 days ago
Earthquake alerts for Tehachapi, CA
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Alerts are on for .
Not a warning. An alert comes after USGS publishes a quake, usually minutes after the shaking. For early warning use ShakeAlert, through your phone's Wireless Emergency Alerts or the MyShake app.
This was a small earthquake. Shaking like this is often felt indoors nearby and very rarely causes damage.
At this magnitude and depth, people at rest would likely notice it out to about 59 km (37 mi) from the epicentre. In Tehachapi, 19 km away, the estimate is intensity III (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: Tehachapi 19 km, intensity III · Arvin 28 km, intensity II · Bodfish 34 km, intensity II · Lamont 35 km, intensity II · Mojave 42 km, intensity II · Bakersfield 45 km, intensity II · Oildale 46 km, intensity II · Wofford Heights 47 km, intensity II. Estimated for each town centre; each link is that town's own record.
How big was it?
This earthquake released about 2.1 tons of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 4.4 would have released about 32 times as much.
- Northridge, California 1994 M 6.7 80,000× the energy of this one
- Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 3,600× the energy of this one
- Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 2,500× the energy of this one
- This earthquake M 3.4 about 2.1 tons of TNT
- Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 this one released 4.4× more
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 20 earthquakes of M5 or more within 50 km; the five largest:
- 5.8 Near Bakersfield, California · 24 km W of this epicentre
- 5.7 11km N of Lamont, CA · 34 km WNW of this epicentre
- 5.7 12km NW of California City, California · 43 km E of this epicentre
- 5.6 19km N of Tehachapi, CA · 6 km ENE of this epicentre
- 5.6 14km NNW of Tehachapi, CA · 5 km SE 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 35.2863, -118.5347. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kern County, CA | 19 km (12 mi) | WNW | earthquakes near Kern County |
| Tulare County, CA | 107 km (67 mi) | NNW | earthquakes near Tulare County |
| Ventura County, CA | 117 km (73 mi) | SSW | earthquakes near Ventura County |
| Kings County, CA | 145 km (90 mi) | NW | earthquakes near Kings 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.
- 1.9 17km NW of Tehachapi, CA
- 2.2 26km NNW of Tehachapi, CA
- 1.6 21km N of Neenach, CA
- 2.2 17km SE of Bodfish, CA
- 1.6 15km E of Oildale, CA
- 1.7 16km E of Oildale, CA
- 3.5 16km E of Oildale, CA
- 1.6 22km NNW of Tehachapi, CA
- 1.6 7km S of Mojave, CA
- 1.8 11km SSE of Bodfish, CA
- 1.9 25km SW of Bodfish, CA
- 1.6 18km W of Tehachapi, CA
- 1.7 7km ESE of Lake Isabella, CA
- 1.7 11km E of Lake Isabella, CA
- 1.6 14km S of Bodfish, 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.