Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist
M 2.1ml
Earthquake near Imperial, CA
No earthquake was likely felt in Imperial in the 24 hours to 1:43 am PST (09:43 UTC). The last one was M 4.9, 59 km (37 mi) SE, at 10:27 am PST on 3 November 2026, estimated intensity III (weak) in town; 321 felt reports to USGS. Every earthquake near Imperial
This page: a magnitude 2.1 earthquake was recorded 4 km (3 mi) southwest of Imperial, CA, at 11:21 am PDT on 16 May 2017 (18:21 UTC), 12 km deep.
USGS: 4 km SW of Imperial, California
- When
- 11:21 am PDT on 16 May 2017 ()
- Where
- 4 km (3 mi) southwest of Imperial, CA · earthquakes near Imperial
- Magnitude
- M 2.1 (ml)
- Depth
- 12 km below the surface
- Felt
- no reports yet
- Nearest
- Imperial County, 34 km NE
- Nearest mapped fault
- San Jacinto fault, 9 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 3467 days ago
Earthquake alerts for Imperial, CA
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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 13 km (8 mi) from the epicentre. In Imperial, 4 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: Imperial 4 km, intensity II · El Centro 5 km, intensity II. Estimated for each town centre; each link is that town's own record.
How big was it?
This earthquake released about 49 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.
- Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 310,000× the energy of this one
- Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 220,000× the energy of this one
- Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 19× the energy of this one
- This earthquake M 2.1 about 49 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 4.0 on 2016-07-31 — about 680 times the energy of this one.
Before 2016, the USGS record lists 40 earthquakes of M5 or more within 50 km; the five largest:
- 6.9 The 1940 Imperial Valley, California Earthquake · 21 km E of this epicentre
- 6.6 The 1942 Fish Creek Mountains, California Earthquake · 24 km NW of this epicentre
- 6.6 The 1987 Superstition Hills, California Earthquake · 31 km NW of this epicentre
- 6.4 The 1979 Imperial Valley Earthquake, California-Baja California · 29 km SE of this epicentre
- 6.3 The 1906 Imperial Valley, California Earthquake · 13 km NE 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 32.8227, -115.6070. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Imperial County, CA | 34 km (21 mi) | NE | earthquakes near Imperial County |
| Riverside County, CA | 107 km (67 mi) | NNW | earthquakes near Riverside County |
| San Diego County, CA | 111 km (69 mi) | WNW | earthquakes near San Diego County |
Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.
Aftershocks so far
45 earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.
- 2.0 8km SSW of Progreso, B.C., MX
- 1.6 2km S of Brawley, CA
- 1.6 1km NW of Brawley, CA
- 2.1 1km S of Brawley, CA
- 1.9 4km WSW of Progreso, B.C., MX
- 1.6 9km S of Progreso, B.C., MX
- 1.5 13km W of Progreso, B.C., MX
- 1.5 9km NE of Mexicali, B.C., MX
- 1.8 8km SSW of Holtville, CA
- 2.2 8km ENE of Calexico, CA
- 1.7 3km E of Westmorland, CA
- 1.6 3km E of Westmorland, CA
- 1.8 23km ESE of Ocotillo Wells, CA
- 1.8 4km NE of Progreso, B.C., MX
- 2.1 17km SSE of Progreso, 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.