Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist
M 2.1ml
Earthquake near Arvin, CA
No earthquake was likely felt in Arvin in the 24 hours to 8:39 am PST (16:39 UTC). The last one was M 2.8, 14 km (9 mi) WSW, at 2:35 am PDT on 29 July 2026, estimated intensity II (weak) in town; 1 felt report to USGS. Every earthquake near Arvin
This page: a magnitude 2.1 earthquake was recorded 15 km (9 mi) east-southeast of Arvin, CA, at 10:38 pm PDT on 29 May 2021 (05:38 UTC), 8.6 km deep. 1 person has reported feeling it to USGS.
USGS: 15km ESE of Arvin, CA
39 km (24 mi) SE of Bakersfield, CA · 129 km (80 mi) N of Los Angeles, CA
- When
- 10:38 pm PDT on 29 May 2021 ()
- Where
- 15 km (9 mi) east-southeast of Arvin, CA · earthquakes near Arvin
- Magnitude
- M 2.1 (ml)
- Depth
- 8.6 km below the surface
- Felt
- 1 report · strongest reported intensity III
- Nearest
- Kern County, 22 km NNW
- Nearest mapped fault
- White Wolf fault, 7 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 1990 days ago
Earthquake alerts for Arvin, CA
Get a notification in this browser when USGS records an earthquake near Arvin, 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 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 15 km (9 mi) from the epicentre. In Arvin, 15 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: Arvin 15 km, intensity II. Estimated for each town centre; each link is that town's own record.
How big was it?
This earthquake released about 41 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 5.8 370,000× the energy of this one
- Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 260,000× the energy of this one
- Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 23× the energy of this one
- This earthquake M 2.1 about 41 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 29 earthquakes of M5 or more within 50 km; the five largest:
- 7.5 The 1952 Kern County, California Earthquake · 36 km SW of this epicentre
- 6.0 Tejon Pass, California · 35 km SW of this epicentre
- 5.8 Near Bakersfield, California · 19 km NW of this epicentre
- 5.8 13km WNW of Grapevine, CA · 41 km WSW of this epicentre
- 5.7 11km N of Lamont, CA · 30 km NW 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 35.1560, -118.6810. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kern County, CA | 22 km (13 mi) | NNW | earthquakes near Kern County |
| Ventura County, CA | 98 km (61 mi) | SSW | earthquakes near Ventura County |
| Los Angeles County, CA | 113 km (70 mi) | SSE | earthquakes near Los Angeles County |
| Tulare County, CA | 120 km (74 mi) | N | earthquakes near Tulare County |
| Kings County, CA | 145 km (90 mi) | NW | earthquakes near Kings County |
Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.
Aftershocks so far
55 earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.
- 2.0 15km NNW of Tehachapi, CA
- 1.8 16km NW of Tehachapi, CA
- 1.9 12km SE of Bodfish, CA
- 1.6 13km SE of Bodfish, CA
- 2.0 13km SE of Bodfish, CA
- 2.0 9km S of Lamont, CA
- 2.1 20km NW of Tehachapi, CA
- 1.5 12km NNE of Pine Mountain Club, CA
- 1.7 21km S of Rosedale, CA
- 1.6 14km NNW of Tehachapi, CA
- 1.7 11km W of Mojave, CA
- 1.8 12km SE of Bodfish, CA
- 1.6 13km SE of Bodfish, CA
- 2.0 14km NNW of Grapevine, CA
- 1.6 21km NW of Grapevine, 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.