QuakeIndex

Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist

M 2.9ml

Earthquake near Isla Vista, CA

No earthquake was likely felt in Isla Vista in the 24 hours to 7:36 am PST (15:36 UTC). The last one was M 1.7, 9 km (5 mi) ESE, at 8:42 am PDT on 5 October 2026, estimated intensity II (weak) in town; 2 felt reports to USGS. Every earthquake near Isla Vista

This page: a magnitude 2.9 earthquake was recorded 16 km (10 mi) south-southeast of Isla Vista, CA, at 11:27 am PST on 9 January 2025 (19:27 UTC), less than 1 km deep. 18 people have reported feeling it to USGS.

USGS: 16 km SSE of Isla Vista, CA

15 km (10 mi) SSW of Santa Barbara, CA · 131 km (81 mi) WNW of Los Angeles, CA

11:27 am PST, Jan 9, 2025 · · -0.1 km deep · released about 700 lb of TNT

Every earthquake near Isla Vista Felt it? Tell USGS Check my area
10 km30 km60 km120 km N Santa Barbara County 36 kmVentura County 61 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
11:27 am PST on 9 January 2025 ()
Where
16 km (10 mi) south-southeast of Isla Vista, CA · earthquakes near Isla Vista
Magnitude
M 2.9 (ml)
Depth
-0.1 km below the surface
Felt
18 reports · strongest reported intensity III
Measured shaking
intensity II (ShakeMap)
Nearest
Santa Barbara County, 36 km NW
Nearest mapped fault
Oak Ridge fault (offshore), 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 602 days ago

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 32 km (20 mi) from the epicentre. In Isla Vista, 16 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: Isla Vista 16 km, intensity III · Goleta 17 km, intensity II · Santa Barbara 18 km, intensity II · Carpinteria 29 km, intensity II. Estimated for each town centre; each link is that town's own record.

How big was it?

This earthquake released about 700 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 3.9 would have released about 32 times as much.

  1. Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 22,000× the energy of this one
  2. Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 15,000× the energy of this one
  3. Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 1.4× the energy of this one
  4. This earthquake M 2.9 about 700 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 4.1 on 2017-05-17 — about 53 times the energy of this one.

Before 2016, the USGS record lists 9 earthquakes of M5 or more within 50 km; the five largest:

  1. 6.8 The 1925 Santa Barbara, California Earthquake · 2 km NNW of this epicentre
  2. 5.5 30 km SW of Channel Islands Beach, California · 42 km SE of this epicentre
  3. 5.5 10 km NE of Toro Canyon, California · 36 km NE of this epicentre
  4. 5.5 The 1941 Santa Barbara, California Earthquake · 22 km ENE of this epicentre
  5. 5.2 9 km SW of Channel Islands Beach, California · 50 km ESE 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 34.2832, -119.7957. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Nearby places

PlaceDistanceDirection from the epicentre
Santa Barbara County, CA 36 km (22 mi) NW earthquakes near Santa Barbara County
Ventura County, CA 61 km (38 mi) E earthquakes near Ventura County
Kern County, CA 153 km (95 mi) NE earthquakes near Kern County

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

Aftershocks so far

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

  1. 1.9 13 km NE of Carpinteria, CA
  2. 1.8 11 km S of Carpinteria, CA
  3. 1.5 13 km SSW of Isla Vista, CA
  4. 2.3 7 km S of Carpinteria, CA
  5. 1.8 11 km S of Carpinteria, CA
  6. 2.9 9 km S of Carpinteria, CA
  7. 1.8 9 km SSW of Ojai, CA
  8. 1.5 7 km SW of Santa Cruz Is. (E end), CA
  9. 1.5 16 km N of Goleta, CA
  10. 2.0 9 km S of Ojai, CA
  11. 1.6 9 km SSW of Ojai, CA
  12. 1.6 9 km S of Ojai, CA
  13. 2.0 6 km WSW of Ojai, CA
  14. 2.9 5 km WSW of Ojai, CA
  15. 2.2 29 km ENE of Santa Ynez, 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.