Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist
M 2.1ml
Earthquake near Murrieta, CA
No earthquake was likely felt in Murrieta in the 24 hours to 3:56 am PST (11:56 UTC). The last one was M 2.4, 10 km (6 mi) ESE, at 3:31 am PDT on 5 September 2026, estimated intensity II (weak) in town; 86 felt reports to USGS. Every earthquake near Murrieta
This page: a magnitude 2.1 earthquake was recorded 5 km (3 mi) north of Murrieta, CA, at 2:47 am PDT on 24 March 2020 (09:47 UTC), 15 km deep. 20 people have reported feeling it to USGS.
USGS: 5km N of Murrieta, CA
in Murrieta, CA · 120 km (75 mi) ESE of Los Angeles, CA
- When
- 2:47 am PDT on 24 March 2020 ()
- Where
- 5 km (3 mi) north of Murrieta, CA · earthquakes near Murrieta
- Magnitude
- M 2.1 (ml)
- Depth
- 15 km below the surface
- Felt
- 20 reports · strongest reported intensity IV
- Nearest
- Orange County, 53 km W
- Nearest mapped fault
- Elsinore fault, 4 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 1584 days ago
Earthquake alerts for Murrieta, 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 6 km (4 mi) from the epicentre. In Murrieta, 5 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: Murrieta 5 km, intensity II · Wildomar 6 km, intensity II. Estimated for each town centre; each link is that town's own record.
How big was it?
This earthquake released about 37 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 5.8 410,000× the energy of this one
- Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 290,000× the energy of this one
- Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 26× the energy of this one
- This earthquake M 2.1 about 37 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 4.4 on 2018-08-15 — about 3,300 times the energy of this one.
Before 2016, the USGS record lists 7 earthquakes of M5 or more within 50 km; the five largest:
- 6.7 The 1918 San Jacinto, California Earthquake · 29 km NE of this epicentre
- 6.0 The 1910 Lake Elsinore, California Earthquake · 21 km WNW of this epicentre
- 5.3 6km SSE of Hemet, CA · 28 km ENE of this epicentre
- 5.2 8km ENE of Trabuco Canyon, CA · 30 km WNW of this epicentre
- 5.0 Near Lake Elsinore, California · 21 km WNW 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 33.5982, -117.2132. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Orange County, CA | 53 km (33 mi) | W | earthquakes near Orange County |
| San Diego County, CA | 76 km (47 mi) | SSE | earthquakes near San Diego County |
| Riverside County, CA | 113 km (70 mi) | E | earthquakes near Riverside County |
| Los Angeles County, CA | 117 km (73 mi) | NW | earthquakes near Los Angeles 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.
- 1.9 9km SW of Corona, CA
- 1.6 7km NE of Beaumont, CA
- 1.7 8km SW of Anza, CA
- 1.6 7km ENE of Aguanga, CA
- 1.6 7km SSE of Home Gardens, CA
- 1.6 6km S of Redlands, CA
- 1.8 6km E of Calimesa, CA
- 1.6 4km SE of Loma Linda, CA
- 2.6 14km WNW of Anza, CA
- 1.5 3km SE of Home Gardens, CA
- 1.9 13km WNW of Anza, CA
- 1.7 7km ENE of Aguanga, CA
- 1.8 9km NE of Aguanga, CA
- 1.7 10km NNW of Anza, CA
- 1.8 7km ENE of Aguanga, 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.