Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist
M 3.5mw
Earthquake near Idyllwild, CA
No earthquake was likely felt in Idyllwild in the 24 hours to 6:32 am PST (14:32 UTC). The last one was M 2.7, 19 km (12 mi) WNW, at 1:04 am PDT on 11 October 2026, estimated intensity II (weak) in town; 58 felt reports to USGS. Every earthquake near Idyllwild
This page: a magnitude 3.5 earthquake was recorded 10 km (6 mi) north-northwest of Idyllwild, CA, at 11:39 pm PST on 17 January 2022 (07:39 UTC), 12 km deep. 606 people have reported feeling it to USGS.
USGS: 10km NNW of Idyllwild, CA
20 km (12 mi) ESE of Beaumont, CA · 118 km (73 mi) NNE of San Diego, CA
- When
- 11:39 pm PST on 17 January 2022 ()
- Where
- 10 km (6 mi) north-northwest of Idyllwild, CA · earthquakes near Idyllwild
- Magnitude
- M 3.5 (mw)
- Depth
- 12 km below the surface
- Felt
- 606 reports · strongest reported intensity V
- Measured shaking
- intensity IV (ShakeMap)
- Nearest
- Riverside County, 70 km E
- Nearest mapped fault
- San Jacinto 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 1478 days ago
Earthquake alerts for Idyllwild, CA
Get a notification in this browser when USGS records an earthquake near Idyllwild, 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 59 km (37 mi) from the epicentre. In Idyllwild, 10 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: Idyllwild 10 km, intensity III · Valle Vista 16 km, intensity III · Banning 16 km, intensity III · Palm Springs 19 km, intensity III · San Jacinto 20 km, intensity III · Hemet 22 km, intensity II · Beaumont 24 km, intensity II · Cathedral City 27 km, intensity II. Estimated for each town centre; each link is that town's own record.
How big was it?
This earthquake released about 2.3 tons of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 4.5 would have released about 32 times as much.
- Northridge, California 1994 M 6.7 75,000× the energy of this one
- Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 3,300× the energy of this one
- Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 2,400× the energy of this one
- This earthquake M 3.5 about 2.3 tons of TNT
- Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 this one released 4.7× 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 4.9 on 2020-04-04 — about 130 times the energy of this one.
Before 2016, the USGS record lists 28 earthquakes of M5 or more within 50 km; the five largest:
- 6.7 The 1918 San Jacinto, California Earthquake · 22 km WSW of this epicentre
- 6.3 The 1992 Big Bear, California Earthquake · 43 km N of this epicentre
- 6.1 The 1992 Joshua Tree, California Earthquake · 43 km ENE of this epicentre
- 6.0 The 1948 Desert Hot Springs, California Earthquake · 43 km ENE of this epicentre
- 6.0 The 1986 North Palm Springs, California Earthquake · 23 km NE 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 33.8255, -116.7507. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Riverside County, CA | 70 km (43 mi) | E | earthquakes near Riverside County |
| San Diego County, CA | 89 km (55 mi) | S | earthquakes near San Diego County |
| Orange County, CA | 96 km (60 mi) | W | earthquakes near Orange County |
| San Bernardino County, CA | 126 km (78 mi) | NNE | earthquakes near San Bernardino County |
Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.
Aftershocks so far
52 earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.
- 1.5 4km ENE of Beaumont, CA
- 2.1 1km ENE of Yucaipa, CA
- 2.0 16km ESE of Anza, CA
- 2.3 8km NE of Cabazon, CA
- 2.0 23km ESE of Anza, CA
- 1.5 3km ESE of Loma Linda, CA
- 1.6 4km NE of Banning, CA
- 1.8 5km ENE of Beaumont, CA
- 1.8 2km WNW of Valle Vista, CA
- 1.7 11km ENE of Aguanga, CA
- 1.6 18km ESE of Anza, CA
- 2.6 2km S of Redlands, CA
- 1.5 4km SSW of Redlands, CA
- 1.9 11km NNW of Anza, CA
- 2.0 18km NNW of Morongo Valley, 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.