Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist
M 3.2ml
Earthquake near Ridgecrest, CA
Yes: an earthquake was likely felt in Ridgecrest in the last 24 hours. M 1.5, 7 km (4 mi) E of Ridgecrest, at 3:54 am PST on 12 November 2026 (11:54 UTC); the estimated shaking in Ridgecrest was intensity II (weak). Every earthquake near Ridgecrest
This page: a magnitude 3.2 earthquake was recorded 45 km (28 mi) north of Ridgecrest, CA, at 11:34 am PDT on 19 September 2017 (18:34 UTC), 1.6 km deep. 1 person has reported feeling it to USGS.
USGS: 16km NE of Little Lake, CA
- When
- 11:34 am PDT on 19 September 2017 ()
- Where
- 45 km (28 mi) north of Ridgecrest, CA · earthquakes near Ridgecrest
- Magnitude
- M 3.2 (ml)
- Depth
- 1.6 km below the surface
- Felt
- 1 report · strongest reported intensity II
- Nearest
- Inyo County, 69 km NNE
- Nearest mapped fault
- Little Lake fault, 17 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 3251 days ago
Earthquake alerts for Ridgecrest, CA
Get a notification in this browser when USGS records an earthquake near Ridgecrest, CA. No account or email needed.
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 46 km (29 mi) from the epicentre. In Ridgecrest, 45 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: Searles Valley 43 km, intensity II · Ridgecrest 45 km, intensity II. Estimated for each town centre; each link is that town's own record.
How big was it?
This earthquake released about 1,800 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 4.2 would have released about 32 times as much.
- Northridge, California 1994 M 6.7 180,000× the energy of this one
- Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 8,200× the energy of this one
- Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 5,800× the energy of this one
- This earthquake M 3.2 about 1,800 lb of TNT
- Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 this one released 1.9× 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 18 earthquakes of M5 or more within 50 km; the five largest:
- 6.3 The 1946 Walker Pass, California Earthquake · 39 km SSW of this epicentre
- 5.8 16km NNE of Ridgecrest, California · 31 km SSE of this epicentre
- 5.4 14km NW of Inyokern, CA · 36 km SSW of this epicentre
- 5.4 4km N of Inyokern, CA · 38 km S of this epicentre
- 5.4 17km N of Ridgecrest, California · 29 km SSE 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 36.0190, -117.7673. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Inyo County, CA | 69 km (43 mi) | NNE | earthquakes near Inyo County |
| Tulare County, CA | 94 km (58 mi) | WNW | earthquakes near Tulare County |
| Kern County, CA | 115 km (71 mi) | SW | earthquakes near Kern County |
Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.
Aftershocks so far
59 earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.
- 1.8 25km NNE of Kernville, CA
- 1.7 15km NE of Little Lake, CA
- 1.6 8km ENE of Coso Junction, CA
- 1.5 25km WNW of Inyokern, CA
- 1.6 26km E of Coso Junction, CA
- 2.5 15km NE of Little Lake, CA
- 1.6 12km NNE of Ridgecrest, CA
- 2.1 27km ENE of Coso Junction, CA
- 1.6 8km SSW of Searles Valley, CA
- 2.1 5km NE of Coso Junction, CA
- 2.5 11km E of Coso Junction, CA
- 1.8 21km NNE of Trona, CA
- 2.4 11km SE of Olancha, CA
- 1.6 18km ENE of Coso Junction, CA
- 1.6 11km S of Little Lake, 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.