Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist
M 2.8ml
Earthquake near San Diego, CA
USGS: 6km SSW of La Jolla, CA
15 km (9 mi) W of San Diego, CA
- When
- 12:31 pm PDT on 13 April 2016 ()
- Where
- 15 km (9 mi) NW of San Diego, CA · earthquakes near San Diego
- Magnitude
- M 2.8 (ml)
- Depth
- 7.8 km below the surface
- Felt
- 72 reports · strongest reported intensity IV
- Nearest
- San Diego County, 55 km ENE
- Nearest mapped fault
- Newport-Inglewood-Rose Canyon fault, 6 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 3824 days ago
A magnitude 2.8 earthquake was recorded 15 km (9 mi) NW of San Diego, CA, at 12:31 pm PDT on 13 April 2016 (19:31 UTC). 72 people have reported feeling it to USGS. This was a small earthquake. Shaking like this is often felt indoors nearby and very rarely causes damage.
Earthquakes near other towns within 30 km: Coronado, Del Mar, Solana Beach, National City, Fairbanks Ranch, Lemon Grove.
How big was it?
This earthquake released about 400 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 3.8 would have released about 32 times as much.
- Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 38,000× the energy of this one
- Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 27,000× the energy of this one
- Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 2.4× the energy of this one
- This earthquake M 2.8 about 400 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 since 1900 lists no earthquake of M5 or more within 50 km.
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 32.7963, -117.2942. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| San Diego County, CA | 55 km (34 mi) | ENE | earthquakes near San Diego County |
| Orange County, CA | 108 km (67 mi) | NNW | earthquakes near Orange County |
Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.
Aftershocks so far
46 earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.
- 1.6 3km WSW of Tijuana, B.C., MX
- 1.6 30km SW of Coronado, CA
- 1.6 6km SE of Chula Vista, CA
- 1.6 6km N of Lakeside, CA
- 1.5 6km ESE of Chula Vista, CA
- 1.5 4 km NNE of Rancho Penasquitos, California
- 2.8 44 km W of La Jolla, California
- 1.8 40 km WSW of Carlsbad, California
- 1.6 1km WSW of Tijuana, B.C., MX
- 2.0 28km W of La Jolla, CA
- 1.7 4km WNW of Alpine, CA
- 2.2 41km WSW of Carlsbad, CA
- 2.5 41km WSW of Carlsbad, CA
- 1.8 41km WSW of Carlsbad, CA
- 2.9 6km ESE of Tijuana, B.C., MX
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.