Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist
M 1.6ml
Earthquake near South Pasadena, CA
No earthquake was likely felt in South Pasadena in the 24 hours to 6:15 am PST (14:15 UTC). The last one was M 3.2, 37 km (23 mi) S, at 12:44 am PDT on 9 October 2026, estimated intensity II (weak) in town; 1,090 felt reports to USGS. Every earthquake near South Pasadena
This page: a magnitude 1.6 earthquake was recorded 4 km (3 mi) south-southwest of South Pasadena, CA, at 9:56 am PST on 16 December 2024 (17:56 UTC), 11 km deep. 1 person has reported feeling it to USGS.
USGS: 4 km SSW of South Pasadena, CA
23 km (14 mi) ENE of Los Angeles, CA · in Alhambra, CA
- When
- 9:56 am PST on 16 December 2024 ()
- Where
- 4 km (3 mi) south-southwest of South Pasadena, CA · earthquakes near South Pasadena
- Magnitude
- M 1.6 (ml)
- Depth
- 11 km below the surface
- Felt
- 1 report · strongest reported intensity I
- Nearest
- Los Angeles County, 15 km NNW
- Nearest mapped fault
- Hollywood fault, 4 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 695 days ago
Earthquake alerts for South Pasadena, CA
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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 4 km (2 mi) from the epicentre. In South Pasadena, 4 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: South Pasadena 4 km, intensity II · Alhambra 4 km, intensity II. Estimated for each town centre; each link is that town's own record.
How big was it?
This earthquake released about 8.7 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 2.6 would have released about 32 times as much.
- Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 1,700,000× the energy of this one
- Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 1,200,000× the energy of this one
- Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 110× the energy of this one
- This earthquake M 1.6 about 8.7 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 4.5 on 2020-09-19 — about 22,000 times the energy of this one.
Before 2016, the USGS record lists 21 earthquakes of M5 or more within 50 km; the five largest:
- 6.7 Northridge, California, earthquake · 37 km WNW of this epicentre
- 6.6 1971 San Fernando Earthquake, California · 41 km NNW of this epicentre
- 5.9 The 1987 Whittier Narrows, California Earthquake · 9 km ESE of this epicentre
- 5.9 1km ENE of Granada Hills, California · 37 km NW of this epicentre
- 5.8 10km SSW of Agua Dulce, CA · 41 km NNW 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 34.0815, -118.1705. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles County, CA | 15 km (10 mi) | NNW | earthquakes near Los Angeles County |
| Orange County, CA | 58 km (36 mi) | SE | earthquakes near Orange County |
| Ventura County, CA | 94 km (58 mi) | WNW | earthquakes near Ventura County |
Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.
Aftershocks so far
51 earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.
- 1.7 1 km N of Universal City, CA
- 2.7 7 km SW of Seal Beach, CA
- 1.8 1 km NE of Sherman Oaks, CA
- 1.6 7 km S of Las Flores, CA
- 1.6 5 km ESE of Yorba Linda, CA
- 1.8 3 km SSE of Cudahy, CA
- 2.0 1 km E of Palos Verdes Estates, CA
- 1.6 1 km NW of Rolling Hills Estates, CA
- 1.8 3 km NE of Vincent, CA
- 1.6 3 km N of Placentia, CA
- 2.1 5 km ESE of Yorba Linda, CA
- 1.7 2 km N of Universal City, CA
- 1.6 4 km SE of Rowland Heights, CA
- 1.6 2 km NNW of Universal City, CA
- 1.6 1 km NE of Sherman Oaks, 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.