Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist
M 1.5md
Earthquake near Cambria, CA
USGS: 33 km W of San Simeon, California
- When
- 11:49 am PST on 20 December 2016 ()
- Where
- 45 km (28 mi) WNW of Cambria, CA · earthquakes near Cambria
- Magnitude
- M 1.5 (md)
- Depth
- 6.6 km below the surface
- Felt
- no reports yet
- Nearest
- Monterey County, 64 km NNE
- Nearest mapped fault
- San Gregorio fault, 17 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 3521 days ago
A magnitude 1.5 earthquake was recorded 45 km (28 mi) WNW of Cambria, CA, at 11:49 am PST on 20 December 2016 (19:49 UTC). This was a minor earthquake. Quakes this small are rarely felt and do not cause damage.
How big was it?
This earthquake released about 6.2 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 2.5 would have released about 32 times as much.
- Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 2,500,000× the energy of this one
- Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 1,700,000× the energy of this one
- Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 150× the energy of this one
- This earthquake M 1.5 about 6.2 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
No earthquake of M4 or more has been recorded within 50 km since our catalogue begins in 2016.
Before 2016, the USGS record lists 5 earthquakes of M5 or more within 50 km:
- 6.5 10 km NE of San Simeon, California · 41 km E of this epicentre
- 6.2 28km NW of Cambria, CA · 21 km E of this epicentre
- 5.7 Southwest of Cambria, California · 39 km SE of this epicentre
- 5.2 25 km NW of San Simeon, California · 23 km NE of this epicentre
- 5.2 22 km NW of San Simeon, California · 23 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 35.6957, -121.5532. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monterey County, CA | 64 km (40 mi) | NNE | earthquakes near Monterey County |
| San Luis Obispo County, CA | 106 km (66 mi) | ESE | earthquakes near San Luis Obispo County |
| San Benito County, CA | 110 km (68 mi) | NNE | earthquakes near San Benito County |
Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.
Aftershocks so far
57 earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.
- 2.7 8 km SW of Oak Shores, California
- 1.6 26 km NW of San Simeon, California
- 2.0 13 km N of San Simeon, California
- 1.8 7 km ENE of San Simeon, California
- 2.4 7 km ENE of San Simeon, California
- 1.8 23 km SE of Big Sur, California
- 2.5 9 km SW of Oak Shores, California
- 1.8 7 km SW of Oak Shores, California
- 2.0 8 km SW of Oak Shores, California
- 2.3 8 km NE of San Simeon, California
- 1.7 8 km E of San Simeon, California
- 1.7 16 km WSW of Lockwood, California
- 1.8 14 km NNW of San Simeon, California
- 2.1 38 km WNW of San Simeon, California
- 1.9 21 km NW of San Simeon, California
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.