QuakeIndex

Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist

M 3.7ml

Earthquake near Maricopa, CA

No earthquake was likely felt in Maricopa in the 24 hours to 6:17 am PST (14:17 UTC). The last one was M 4.1, 51 km (32 mi) ESE, at 3:38 am PDT on 12 July 2026, estimated intensity III (weak) in town; 798 felt reports to USGS. Every earthquake near Maricopa

This page: a magnitude 3.7 earthquake was recorded 20 km (12 mi) northeast of Maricopa, CA, at 8:53 pm PDT on 10 September 2025 (03:53 UTC), 18 km deep. 305 people have reported feeling it to USGS.

USGS: 20 km NE of Maricopa, CA

27 km (16 mi) SW of Bakersfield, CA · 149 km (93 mi) NNW of Los Angeles, CA

8:53 pm PDT, Sep 10, 2025 · · 18 km deep · released about 5.2 tons of TNT

10 km30 km60 km120 km N Kern County 50 kmVentura County 91 kmSanta Barbara County 102 kmKings County 113 kmSan Luis Obispo County 113 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
8:53 pm PDT on 10 September 2025 ()
Where
20 km (12 mi) northeast of Maricopa, CA · earthquakes near Maricopa
Magnitude
M 3.7 (ml)
Depth
18 km below the surface
Felt
305 reports · strongest reported intensity III
Measured shaking
intensity IV (ShakeMap)
Nearest
Kern County, 50 km ENE
Nearest mapped fault
Wheeler Ridge fault, 21 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 344 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 73 km (45 mi) from the epicentre. In Maricopa, 20 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: Maricopa 20 km, intensity III · Taft 21 km, intensity III · Rosedale 24 km, intensity III · Bakersfield 29 km, intensity II · Lamont 30 km, intensity II · Buttonwillow 33 km, intensity II · Oildale 33 km, intensity II · Shafter 36 km, intensity II. Estimated for each town centre; each link is that town's own record.

How big was it?

This earthquake released about 5.2 tons of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 4.7 would have released about 32 times as much.

  1. Northridge, California 1994 M 6.7 33,000× the energy of this one
  2. Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 1,500× the energy of this one
  3. Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 1,000× the energy of this one
  4. This earthquake M 3.7 about 5.2 tons of TNT
  5. Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 this one released 11× more

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 2024-08-07 — about 200 times the energy of this one.

Before 2016, the USGS record lists 20 earthquakes of M5 or more within 50 km; the five largest:

  1. 7.5 The 1952 Kern County, California Earthquake · 32 km SE of this epicentre
  2. 6.0 Tejon Pass, California · 43 km SE of this epicentre
  3. 5.8 Near Bakersfield, California · 42 km ENE of this epicentre
  4. 5.8 13km WNW of Grapevine, CA · 27 km SE of this epicentre
  5. 5.7 11km N of Lamont, CA · 37 km ENE 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 35.1762, -119.2337. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Nearby places

PlaceDistanceDirection from the epicentre
Kern County, CA 50 km (31 mi) ENE earthquakes near Kern County
Ventura County, CA 91 km (57 mi) S earthquakes near Ventura County
Santa Barbara County, CA 102 km (64 mi) SW earthquakes near Santa Barbara County
Kings County, CA 113 km (70 mi) NNW earthquakes near Kings County
San Luis Obispo County, CA 113 km (70 mi) WNW earthquakes near San Luis Obispo County
Tulare County, CA 124 km (77 mi) NNE earthquakes near Tulare County

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

Aftershocks so far

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

  1. 1.6 19 km NW of Grapevine, CA
  2. 1.7 19 km WSW of Lamont, CA
  3. 3.0 22 km NW of Grapevine, CA
  4. 1.9 8 km NNE of Lebec, CA
  5. 3.2 24 km SW of Maricopa, CA
  6. 1.8 18 km SE of Buttonwillow, CA
  7. 2.1 16 km WNW of Grapevine, CA
  8. 1.5 3 km WNW of Frazier Park, CA
  9. 2.4 2 km WNW of Frazier Park, CA
  10. 1.8 2 km NNE of Frazier Park, CA
  11. 1.5 19 km WSW of Lamont, CA
  12. 1.6 16 km SE of Maricopa, CA
  13. 1.7 18 km S of Maricopa, CA
  14. 2.7 9 km WSW of Grapevine, CA
  15. 2.1 10 km NNW of Grapevine, 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.