Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist
M 3.3ml
Earthquake near Coronado, CA
No earthquake was likely felt in Coronado in the 24 hours to 5:02 am PST (13:02 UTC). The last one was M 4.7, 155 km (96 mi) ENE, at 12:10 am PDT on 10 May 2026, estimated intensity II (weak) in town; 203 felt reports to USGS. Every earthquake near Coronado
This page: a magnitude 3.3 earthquake was recorded 14 km (9 mi) southwest of Coronado, CA, at 5:48 am PST on 5 December 2020 (13:48 UTC), 16 km deep. 126 people have reported feeling it to USGS.
USGS: 14km SW of Coronado, CA
29 km (18 mi) SSW of San Diego, CA · 20 km (12 mi) WSW of National City, CA
- When
- 5:48 am PST on 5 December 2020 ()
- Where
- 14 km (9 mi) southwest of Coronado, CA · earthquakes near Coronado
- Magnitude
- M 3.3 (ml)
- Depth
- 16 km below the surface
- Felt
- 126 reports · strongest reported intensity IV
- Measured shaking
- intensity III (ShakeMap)
- Nearest
- San Diego County, 68 km NE
- Nearest mapped fault
- Newport-Inglewood-Rose Canyon fault, 9 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 1571 days ago
Earthquake alerts for Coronado, CA
Get a notification in this browser when USGS records an earthquake near Coronado, 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 47 km (29 mi) from the epicentre. In Coronado, 14 km away, the estimate is intensity III (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: San Diego 18 km, intensity II. Estimated for each town centre; each link is that town's own record.
How big was it?
This earthquake released about 1.1 tons of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 4.3 would have released about 32 times as much.
- Northridge, California 1994 M 6.7 150,000× the energy of this one
- Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 6,700× the energy of this one
- Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 4,700× the energy of this one
- This earthquake M 3.3 about 1.1 tons of TNT
- Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 this one released 2.4× 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 since 1900 lists no earthquake of M5 or more within 50 km.
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 32.5917, -117.2900. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| San Diego County, CA | 68 km (42 mi) | NE | earthquakes near San Diego County |
Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.
Aftershocks so far
48 earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.
- 1.5 5km ESE of Chula Vista, CA
- 1.6 5km NE of San Ysidro, CA
- 1.6 6km NNW of Lakeside, CA
- 1.7 30km WSW of La Jolla, CA
- 1.7 18km WSW of La Jolla, CA
- 1.6 5km NE of Rancho San Diego, CA
- 1.6 4km NNE of San Ysidro, CA
- 1.6 3km NNE of San Ysidro, CA
- 1.6 6km NNW of Lakeside, CA
- 2.0 13km NW of Rosarito, B.C., MX
- 1.6 3km ENE of Rancho San Diego, CA
- 2.7 33km WSW of La Jolla, CA
- 1.6 5km SE of Chula Vista, CA
- 1.6 6km NNW of Lakeside, CA
- 1.6 6km NE of Rancho San Diego, 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.