Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist
M 2.3ml
Earthquake near Torrance, CA
No earthquake was likely felt in Torrance in the 24 hours to 2:51 pm PST (22:51 UTC). The last one was M 3.2, 15 km (10 mi) ESE, at 12:44 am PDT on 9 October 2026, estimated intensity III (weak) in town; 1,090 felt reports to USGS. Every earthquake near Torrance
This page: a magnitude 2.3 earthquake was recorded 38 km (24 mi) west-southwest of Torrance, CA, at 1:23 pm PDT on 15 August 2023 (20:23 UTC), 2.9 km deep.
USGS: 32 km W of Rancho Palos Verdes, CA
45 km (28 mi) SW of Los Angeles, CA · 34 km (21 mi) WSW of Redondo Beach, CA
- When
- 1:23 pm PDT on 15 August 2023 ()
- Where
- 38 km (24 mi) west-southwest of Torrance, CA · earthquakes near Torrance
- Magnitude
- M 2.3 (ml)
- Depth
- 2.9 km below the surface
- Felt
- no reports yet
- Nearest
- Los Angeles County, 68 km NE
- Nearest mapped fault
- San Pedro Basin fault, 11 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 1180 days ago
Earthquake alerts for Torrance, CA
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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 20 km (12 mi) from the epicentre. In Torrance, 38 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.
How big was it?
This earthquake released about 91 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.
- Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 170,000× the energy of this one
- Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 120,000× the energy of this one
- Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 10× the energy of this one
- This earthquake M 2.3 about 91 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 4.3 on 2021-09-18 — about 870 times the energy of this one.
Before 2016, the USGS record lists 7 earthquakes of M5 or more within 50 km; the five largest:
- 5.5 11km NNW of Santa Barbara Is., CA · 40 km WSW of this epicentre
- 5.3 2 km SSW of Santa Monica, California · 38 km NNE of this epicentre
- 5.3 The 1973 Point Mugu, California Earthquake · 42 km NW of this epicentre
- 5.2 1 km SW of Las Flores, California · 36 km NNE of this epicentre
- 5.2 13km S of Malibu Beach, CA · 22 km N 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 33.7177, -118.7277. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles County, CA | 68 km (43 mi) | NE | earthquakes near Los Angeles County |
| Ventura County, CA | 80 km (50 mi) | NNW | earthquakes near Ventura County |
| Orange County, CA | 88 km (55 mi) | E | earthquakes near Orange County |
Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.
Aftershocks so far
47 earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.
- 1.8 11 km WNW of Malibu, CA
- 1.6 12 km NW of Malibu, CA
- 1.9 11 km WNW of Malibu, CA
- 1.6 11 km NW of Malibu, CA
- 1.6 16 km WNW of Malibu, CA
- 1.7 10 km WNW of Malibu, CA
- 1.7 12 km NW of Malibu, CA
- 2.0 11 km WNW of Malibu, CA
- 2.5 9 km WNW of Malibu, CA
- 1.7 12 km WNW of Malibu, CA
- 1.8 13 km WNW of Malibu, CA
- 2.2 10 km NW of Malibu, CA
- 2.4 11 km WNW of Malibu, CA
- 3.0 11 km WNW of Malibu, CA
- 2.3 11 km WNW of Malibu, 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.