Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist
M 2.5ml
Earthquake near California City, CA
USGS: 32km SE of Bodfish, CA
75 km (47 mi) E of Bakersfield, CA
- When
- 3:00 am PST on 29 November 2016 ()
- Where
- 37 km (23 mi) NW of California City, CA · earthquakes near California City
- Magnitude
- M 2.5 (ml)
- Depth
- 7.8 km below the surface
- Felt
- 1 report · strongest reported intensity II
- Nearest
- Kern County, 47 km W
- Nearest mapped fault
- Southern Sierra Nevada fault, 15 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 3523 days ago
A magnitude 2.5 earthquake was recorded 37 km (23 mi) NW of California City, CA, at 3:00 am PST on 29 November 2016 (11:00 UTC). 1 person has reported feeling it to USGS. This was a small earthquake. Shaking like this is often felt indoors nearby and very rarely causes damage.
How big was it?
This earthquake released about 190 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 3.5 would have released about 32 times as much.
- Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 80,000× the energy of this one
- Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 57,000× the energy of this one
- Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 5.1× the energy of this one
- This earthquake M 2.5 about 190 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 14 earthquakes of M5 or more within 50 km; the five largest:
- 6.3 The 1946 Walker Pass, California Earthquake · 41 km NE of this epicentre
- 5.7 12km NW of California City, California · 25 km SSE of this epicentre
- 5.6 19km N of Tehachapi, CA · 26 km WSW of this epicentre
- 5.6 14km NNW of Tehachapi, CA · 31 km WSW of this epicentre
- 5.5 22km N of Tehachapi, CA · 24 km WSW 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 35.4030, -118.2138. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kern County, CA | 47 km (29 mi) | W | earthquakes near Kern County |
| Tulare County, CA | 105 km (65 mi) | NNW | earthquakes near Tulare County |
| Ventura County, CA | 143 km (89 mi) | SW | earthquakes near Ventura County |
Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.
Aftershocks so far
40 earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.
- 1.7 9 km SE of Squirrel Mountain Valley, California
- 1.7 9 km N of Keene, California
- 1.6 27 km SSE of Squirrel Mountain Valley, California
- 2.0 1 km NW of Keene, California
- 2.4 1 km NW of Keene, California
- 1.5 6 km SSW of Mojave, California
- 1.7 9 km SE of Squirrel Mountain Valley, California
- 3.1 14km ESE of Lake Isabella, CA
- 1.9 11km SE of Tehachapi, CA
- 1.7 21km ENE of Arvin, CA
- 2.1 24km NE of Lamont, CA
- 1.6 14km W of Mojave, CA
- 2.2 17km NW of Tehachapi, CA
- 2.6 27km SSW of Bodfish, CA
- 1.7 10km ESE 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.