Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist
M 2.8ml
Earthquake near Alhambra, CA
No earthquake was likely felt in Alhambra in the 24 hours to 12:03 pm PST (20:03 UTC). The last one was M 3.2, 35 km (22 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 Alhambra
This page: a magnitude 2.8 earthquake was recorded 4 km (2 mi) west-southwest of Alhambra, CA, at 10:04 am PST on 16 December 2024 (18:04 UTC), 11 km deep. 261 people have reported feeling it to USGS.
USGS: 4 km WSW of Alhambra, CA
24 km (15 mi) ENE of Los Angeles, CA · in Alhambra, CA
- When
- 10:04 am PST on 16 December 2024 ()
- Where
- 4 km (2 mi) west-southwest of Alhambra, CA · earthquakes near Alhambra
- Magnitude
- M 2.8 (ml)
- Depth
- 11 km below the surface
- Felt
- 261 reports · strongest reported intensity III
- Nearest
- Los Angeles County, 16 km NW
- 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 239 days ago
Earthquake alerts for Alhambra, CA
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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 25 km (16 mi) from the epicentre. In Alhambra, 4 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: Alhambra 4 km, intensity III · South Pasadena 4 km, intensity III · Monterey Park 4 km, intensity III · San Gabriel 6 km, intensity III · East Los Angeles 7 km, intensity III · Pasadena 7 km, intensity III · Los Angeles 8 km, intensity III · Rosemead 8 km, intensity III. Estimated for each town centre; each link is that town's own record.
How big was it?
This earthquake released about 480 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 3.8 would have released about 32 times as much.
- Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 32,000× the energy of this one
- Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 22,000× the energy of this one
- Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 2× the energy of this one
- This earthquake M 2.8 about 480 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 410 times the energy of this one.
Before 2016, the USGS record lists 20 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 · 42 km NNW of this epicentre
- 5.9 The 1987 Whittier Narrows, California Earthquake · 8 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 · 42 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 34.0827, -118.1637. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles County, CA | 16 km (10 mi) | NW | earthquakes near Los Angeles County |
| Orange County, CA | 58 km (36 mi) | SE | earthquakes near Orange County |
| Ventura County, CA | 94 km (59 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.
- 1.6 3 km SSW of Yorba Linda, CA
- 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
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.