Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist
M 3.2ml
Earthquake near Temecula, CA
No earthquake was likely felt in Temecula in the 24 hours to 8:23 am PST (16:23 UTC). The last one was M 2.4, 4 km (2 mi) NE, at 3:31 am PDT on 5 September 2026, estimated intensity II (weak) in town; 86 felt reports to USGS. Every earthquake near Temecula
This page: a magnitude 3.2 earthquake was recorded 28 km (17 mi) east-southeast of Temecula, CA, at 3:46 pm PST on 8 January 2022 (23:46 UTC), 4.6 km deep. 67 people have reported feeling it to USGS.
USGS: 3km NW of Palomar Observatory, CA
66 km (41 mi) NNE of San Diego, CA · 26 km (16 mi) ESE of Temecula, CA
- When
- 3:46 pm PST on 8 January 2022 ()
- Where
- 28 km (17 mi) east-southeast of Temecula, CA · earthquakes near Temecula
- Magnitude
- M 3.2 (ml)
- Depth
- 4.6 km below the surface
- Felt
- 67 reports · strongest reported intensity IV
- Nearest
- San Diego County, 40 km SSE
- Nearest mapped fault
- Elsinore fault, under 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 1699 days ago
Earthquake alerts for Temecula, 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 47 km (29 mi) from the epicentre. In Temecula, 28 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: Aguanga 8 km, intensity III · Temecula 28 km, intensity II · Anza 28 km, intensity II · Escondido 34 km, intensity II · Murrieta 36 km, intensity II · Ramona 37 km, intensity II · Valle Vista 42 km, intensity II · San Diego Country Estates 42 km, intensity II. Estimated for each town centre; each link is that town's own record.
How big was it?
This earthquake released about 2,000 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 4.2 would have released about 32 times as much.
- Northridge, California 1994 M 6.7 170,000× the energy of this one
- Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 7,700× the energy of this one
- Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 5,400× the energy of this one
- This earthquake M 3.2 about 2,000 lb of TNT
- Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 this one released 2.1× 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
The largest earthquake within 50 km since 2016 was M 5.2 on 2016-06-10 — about 930 times the energy of this one.
Before 2016, the USGS record lists 8 earthquakes of M5 or more within 50 km; the five largest:
- 6.7 The 1918 San Jacinto, California Earthquake · 44 km N of this epicentre
- 5.4 20km NNW of Borrego Springs, CA · 39 km E of this epicentre
- 5.3 6km SSE of Hemet, CA · 37 km N of this epicentre
- 5.3 18km ESE of Anza, CA · 38 km ENE of this epicentre
- 5.2 10km ESE of Anza, CA · 35 km ENE 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 33.3730, -116.8868. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| San Diego County, CA | 40 km (25 mi) | SSE | earthquakes near San Diego County |
| Orange County, CA | 89 km (55 mi) | WNW | earthquakes near Orange County |
| Riverside County, CA | 91 km (57 mi) | ENE | earthquakes near Riverside County |
Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.
Aftershocks so far
59 earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.
- 1.6 4km NW of Palomar Observatory, CA
- 1.6 21km SSW of La Quinta, CA
- 1.5 8km ESE of Valle Vista, CA
- 1.5 13km WNW of Anza, CA
- 1.9 23km SSW of La Quinta, CA
- 2.0 23km ESE of Anza, CA
- 1.7 23km SSW of La Quinta, CA
- 1.5 24km ESE of Anza, CA
- 1.7 23km ESE of Anza, CA
- 1.6 9km SSW of Idyllwild, CA
- 2.3 23km ESE of Anza, CA
- 1.5 23km SSW of La Quinta, CA
- 2.2 6km SSW of Warner Springs, CA
- 2.0 23km ESE of Anza, CA
- 1.8 24km ESE of Anza, 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.