QuakeIndex

Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist

M 2.3ml

Earthquake near Valle Vista, CA

No earthquake was likely felt in Valle Vista in the 24 hours to 7:32 am PST (15:32 UTC). The last one was M 2.2, 9 km (6 mi) NW, at 8:52 pm PDT on 14 October 2026, estimated intensity II (weak) in town; 3 felt reports to USGS. Every earthquake near Valle Vista

This page: a magnitude 2.3 earthquake was recorded 8 km (5 mi) southeast of Valle Vista, CA, at 1:38 am PST on 22 January 2023 (09:38 UTC), 14 km deep. 6 people have reported feeling it to USGS.

USGS: 8km SE of Valle Vista, CA

16 km (10 mi) ESE of Hemet, CA · 103 km (64 mi) NNE of San Diego, CA

1:38 am PST, Jan 22, 2023 · · 14 km deep · released about 77 lb of TNT

Every earthquake near Valle Vista Felt it? Tell USGS Check my area
10 km30 km60 km120 km N San Diego County 75 kmRiverside County 76 kmOrange County 88 km
Distance rings around the epicentre, with the nearest towns at their true direction and later quakes as coloured dots. Not a shaking map — see the USGS ShakeMap for that.
When
1:38 am PST on 22 January 2023 ()
Where
8 km (5 mi) southeast of Valle Vista, CA · earthquakes near Valle Vista
Magnitude
M 2.3 (ml)
Depth
14 km below the surface
Felt
6 reports · strongest reported intensity III
Nearest
San Diego County, 75 km S
Nearest mapped fault
San Jacinto fault, 2 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 1390 days ago

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 13 km (8 mi) from the epicentre. In Valle Vista, 8 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: Valle Vista 8 km, intensity II · Idyllwild 11 km, intensity II. Estimated for each town centre; each link is that town's own record.

How big was it?

This earthquake released about 77 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 3.3 would have released about 32 times as much.

  1. Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 200,000× the energy of this one
  2. Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 140,000× the energy of this one
  3. Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 12× the energy of this one
  4. This earthquake M 2.3 about 77 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

The largest earthquake within 50 km since 2016 was M 5.2 on 2016-06-10 — about 24,000 times the energy of this one.

Before 2016, the USGS record lists 12 earthquakes of M5 or more within 50 km; the five largest:

  1. 6.7 The 1918 San Jacinto, California Earthquake · 15 km WNW of this epicentre
  2. 6.0 The 1986 North Palm Springs, California Earthquake · 39 km NNE of this epicentre
  3. 5.4 20km NNW of Borrego Springs, CA · 45 km SE of this epicentre
  4. 5.3 4km NNE of Desert Hot Springs, CA · 45 km NE of this epicentre
  5. 5.3 6km SSE of Hemet, CA · 11 km W 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 33.7013, -116.8230. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Nearby places

PlaceDistanceDirection from the epicentre
San Diego County, CA 75 km (47 mi) S earthquakes near San Diego County
Riverside County, CA 76 km (47 mi) E earthquakes near Riverside County
Orange County, CA 88 km (55 mi) W earthquakes near Orange County

Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.

Aftershocks so far

44 earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.

  1. 2.6 5km S of Idyllwild, CA
  2. 2.3 14km SE of Anza, CA
  3. 2.0 14km SE of Anza, CA
  4. 2.0 5km ENE of Banning, CA
  5. 1.8 3km SE of San Jacinto, CA
  6. 1.6 10km E of Murrieta Hot Springs, CA
  7. 1.7 9km NE of Aguanga, CA
  8. 2.2 9km NE of Aguanga, CA
  9. 1.8 6km NW of San Jacinto, CA
  10. 1.7 9km NE of Aguanga, CA
  11. 1.5 6km NE of Cabazon, CA
  12. 2.3 20km ESE of Anza, CA
  13. 1.9 22km SSW of La Quinta, CA
  14. 2.1 2km ESE of Yucaipa, CA
  15. 1.5 7km S of Idyllwild, 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

QuakeIndex does not issue warnings. For earthquake early warning see ShakeAlert.