Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist
M 3.1ml
Earthquake near Carlsbad, CA
No earthquake was likely felt in Carlsbad in the 24 hours to 10:33 am PST (18:33 UTC). The last one was M 3.5, 55 km (34 mi) WNW, at 1:22 pm PDT on 5 October 2026, estimated intensity II (weak) in town; 126 felt reports to USGS. Every earthquake near Carlsbad
This page: a magnitude 3.1 earthquake was recorded 26 km (16 mi) west-southwest of Carlsbad, CA, at 11:48 pm PST on 25 January 2021 (07:48 UTC), 14 km deep. 29 people have reported feeling it to USGS.
USGS: 26km WSW of Carlsbad, CA
32 km (20 mi) W of Carlsbad, CA · 127 km (79 mi) SE of Los Angeles, CA
- When
- 11:48 pm PST on 25 January 2021 ()
- Where
- 26 km (16 mi) west-southwest of Carlsbad, CA · earthquakes near Carlsbad
- Magnitude
- M 3.1 (ml)
- Depth
- 14 km below the surface
- Felt
- 29 reports · strongest reported intensity IV
- Nearest
- Orange County, 67 km NNW
- Nearest mapped fault
- Carslbad Ridge fault, 5 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 1765 days ago
Earthquake alerts for Carlsbad, 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 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 42 km (26 mi) from the epicentre. In Carlsbad, 26 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: Oceanside 26 km, intensity II. Estimated for each town centre; each link is that town's own record.
How big was it?
This earthquake released about 1,500 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 4.1 would have released about 32 times as much.
- Northridge, California 1994 M 6.7 220,000× the energy of this one
- Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 9,800× the energy of this one
- Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 6,900× the energy of this one
- This earthquake M 3.1 about 1,500 lb of TNT
- Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 this one released 1.6× 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 one earthquake of M5 or more within 50 km:
- 5.5 The 1986 Oceanside, California Earthquake · 27 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 33.0897, -117.6228. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Orange County, CA | 67 km (41 mi) | NNW | earthquakes near Orange County |
| San Diego County, CA | 79 km (49 mi) | E | earthquakes near San Diego County |
Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.
Aftershocks so far
50 earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.
- 1.8 23 km WSW of Encinitas, CA
- 1.5 9km SSW of Escondido, CA
- 1.6 24km WSW of Carlsbad, CA
- 1.7 44km WSW of Carlsbad, CA
- 1.6 26km WSW of Carlsbad, CA
- 1.7 10km SW of La Jolla, CA
- 1.8 29km SSW of Dana Point, CA
- 2.4 15km SW of La Jolla, CA
- 1.6 9km SSE of San Clemente, CA
- 1.6 2km SSE of Dana Point, CA
- 2.2 28km E of Avalon, CA
- 2.3 42km WSW of Encinitas, CA
- 2.4 26km SW of Laguna Beach, CA
- 2.5 44km SE of Avalon, CA
- 1.6 25km WSW of Encinitas, 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.