QuakeIndex

Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist

M 2.0ml

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 2.0 earthquake was recorded 49 km (30 mi) west-southwest of Ridgecrest, CA, at 5:28 am PDT on 17 June 2020 (12:28 UTC), 10 km deep.

USGS: 33km ESE of Bodfish, CA

79 km (49 mi) E of Bakersfield, CA

5:28 am PDT, Jun 17, 2020 · · 10 km deep · released about 29 lb of TNT

10 km30 km60 km120 km N Kern County 52 kmTulare County 103 km
Distance rings around the epicentre, with the nearest towns at their true direction and later quakes as coloured dots. Not a shaking map — see the USGS ShakeMap for that.
When
5:28 am PDT on 17 June 2020 ()
Where
49 km (30 mi) west-southwest of Ridgecrest, CA · earthquakes near Ridgecrest
Magnitude
M 2.0 (ml)
Depth
10 km below the surface
Felt
no reports yet
Nearest
Kern County, 52 km WSW
Nearest mapped fault
Southern Sierra Nevada fault, 11 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 2338 days ago

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 12 km (7 mi) from the epicentre. In Ridgecrest, 49 km away, the estimate is intensity I (not felt). 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.

Earthquakes near other towns within 30 km: Weldon.

How big was it?

This earthquake released about 29 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 3.0 would have released about 32 times as much.

  1. Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 520,000× the energy of this one
  2. Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 370,000× the energy of this one
  3. Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 33× the energy of this one
  4. This earthquake M 2.0 about 29 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 16 earthquakes of M5 or more within 50 km; the five largest:

  1. 6.3 The 1946 Walker Pass, California Earthquake · 35 km NE of this epicentre
  2. 5.7 12km NW of California City, California · 28 km SSE of this epicentre
  3. 5.6 19km N of Tehachapi, CA · 31 km WSW of this epicentre
  4. 5.6 14km NNW of Tehachapi, CA · 37 km SW of this epicentre
  5. 5.5 22km N of Tehachapi, CA · 30 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 35.4477, -118.1687. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Nearby places

PlaceDistanceDirection from the epicentre
Kern County, CA 52 km (32 mi) WSW earthquakes near Kern County
Tulare County, CA 103 km (64 mi) NNW earthquakes near Tulare County

Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.

Aftershocks so far

17 earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.

  1. 1.7 12km WNW of Wofford Heights, CA
  2. 2.5 25km ESE of Kernville, CA
  3. 1.6 12km WNW of Wofford Heights, CA
  4. 1.6 23km WNW of Inyokern, CA
  5. 1.9 13km SE of Bodfish, CA
  6. 1.6 21km W of Johannesburg, CA
  7. 2.0 7km SSE of Tehachapi, CA
  8. 1.7 12km SE of Bodfish, CA
  9. 1.5 7km SSE of Tehachapi, CA
  10. 2.0 12km SE of Bodfish, CA
  11. 1.5 25km W of Johannesburg, CA
  12. 2.4 25km S of Bodfish, CA
  13. 1.5 25km S of Bodfish, CA
  14. 1.6 25km S of Bodfish, CA
  15. 2.1 25km S 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

QuakeIndex does not issue warnings. For earthquake early warning see ShakeAlert.