Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist
M 1.6ml
Earthquake near Ojai, CA
No earthquake was likely felt in Ojai in the 24 hours to 10:45 am PST (18:45 UTC). The last one was M 1.5, 7 km (5 mi) S, at 2:56 am PST on 6 November 2026, estimated intensity II (weak) in town. Every earthquake near Ojai
This page: a magnitude 1.6 earthquake was recorded 7 km (4 mi) west of Ojai, CA, at 6:36 am PDT on 20 September 2020 (13:36 UTC), 7.9 km deep. 3 people have reported feeling it to USGS.
USGS: 7km W of Ojai, CA
95 km (59 mi) WNW of Los Angeles, CA · 20 km (12 mi) NNW of San Buenaventura (Ventura), CA
- When
- 6:36 am PDT on 20 September 2020 ()
- Where
- 7 km (4 mi) west of Ojai, CA · earthquakes near Ojai
- Magnitude
- M 1.6 (ml)
- Depth
- 7.9 km below the surface
- Felt
- 3 reports · strongest reported intensity III
- Nearest
- Ventura County, 19 km ESE
- Nearest mapped fault
- Mission Ridge fault system, 1 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 2241 days ago
Earthquake alerts for Ojai, 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 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 8 km (5 mi) from the epicentre. In Ojai, 7 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: Ojai 7 km, intensity II. Estimated for each town centre; each link is that town's own record.
How big was it?
This earthquake released about 7.1 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 2.6 would have released about 32 times as much.
- Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 2,100,000× the energy of this one
- Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 1,500,000× the energy of this one
- Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 130× the energy of this one
- This earthquake M 1.6 about 7.1 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 4.1 on 2016-03-12 — about 6,700 times the energy of this one.
Before 2016, the USGS record lists 7 earthquakes of M5 or more within 50 km; the five largest:
- 6.8 The 1925 Santa Barbara, California Earthquake · 47 km WSW of this epicentre
- 5.5 Southwest of Tejon Pass, California · 41 km NE of this epicentre
- 5.5 10 km NE of Toro Canyon, California · 18 km WNW of this epicentre
- 5.5 The 1941 Santa Barbara, California Earthquake · 26 km WSW of this epicentre
- 5.2 9 km SW of Channel Islands Beach, California · 38 km S 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 34.4387, -119.3140. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ventura County, CA | 19 km (12 mi) | ESE | earthquakes near Ventura County |
| Santa Barbara County, CA | 67 km (42 mi) | W | earthquakes near Santa Barbara County |
| Los Angeles County, CA | 100 km (62 mi) | ESE | earthquakes near Los Angeles County |
| Kern County, CA | 114 km (71 mi) | NNE | earthquakes near Kern County |
| San Luis Obispo County, CA | 148 km (92 mi) | NW | earthquakes near San Luis Obispo County |
Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.
Aftershocks so far
47 earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.
- 1.9 1km W of Piru, CA
- 2.1 21km S of Santa Barbara, CA
- 1.5 20km SSW of Frazier Park, CA
- 1.8 20km SSW of Frazier Park, CA
- 1.8 20km SSW of Frazier Park, CA
- 1.8 13km N of Fillmore, CA
- 1.7 13km N of Fillmore, CA
- 1.6 13km N of Fillmore, CA
- 1.9 7km W of Ojai, CA
- 1.6 19km N of Fillmore, CA
- 1.7 19km N of Fillmore, CA
- 1.6 19km NNW of Piru, CA
- 1.5 6km W of Ojai, CA
- 1.6 19km N of Fillmore, CA
- 2.0 12km SSE of Santa Barbara, 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.