Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist
M 2.9md
Earthquake near Milpitas, CA
No earthquake was likely felt in Milpitas in the 24 hours to 2:38 am PST (10:38 UTC). The last one was M 1.6, 9 km (5 mi) NNE, at 5:49 am PDT on 4 October 2026, estimated intensity II (weak) in town. Every earthquake near Milpitas
This page: a magnitude 2.9 earthquake was recorded 10 km (6 mi) northeast of Milpitas, CA, at 8:39 am PDT on 2 October 2020 (15:39 UTC), 5.0 km deep. 103 people have reported feeling it to USGS.
USGS: 10km NE of Milpitas, CA
22 km (14 mi) N of San Jose, CA · 9 km (5 mi) NE of Milpitas, CA
- When
- 8:39 am PDT on 2 October 2020 ()
- Where
- 10 km (6 mi) northeast of Milpitas, CA · earthquakes near Milpitas
- Magnitude
- M 2.9 (md)
- Depth
- 5.0 km below the surface
- Felt
- 103 reports · strongest reported intensity III
- Nearest
- Alameda County, 19 km NNW
- Nearest mapped fault
- Calaveras fault, 5 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 2161 days ago
Earthquake alerts for Milpitas, CA
Get a notification in this browser when USGS records an earthquake near Milpitas, CA. No account or email needed.
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 32 km (20 mi) from the epicentre. In Milpitas, 10 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: Milpitas 10 km, intensity III · Fremont 15 km, intensity III · San Jose 18 km, intensity II · Pleasanton 19 km, intensity II · Newark 19 km, intensity II · Santa Clara 19 km, intensity II · Union City 20 km, intensity II · Livermore 21 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.
- Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 22,000× the energy of this one
- Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 15,000× the energy of this one
- Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 1.4× the energy of this one
- 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 4.3 on 2019-07-16 — about 130 times the energy of this one.
Before 2016, the USGS record lists 16 earthquakes of M5 or more within 50 km; the five largest:
- 6.5 Near Morgan Hill, California · 46 km SSE of this epicentre
- 6.2 Near San Jose, California · 22 km S of this epicentre
- 6.2 The 1984 Morgan Hill, California Earthquake · 24 km SSE of this epicentre
- 6.1 Near San Jose, California · 33 km S of this epicentre
- 5.8 7 km NNW of Boulder Creek, California · 44 km SW 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 37.4945, -121.8272. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alameda County, CA | 19 km (12 mi) | NNW | earthquakes near Alameda County |
| Santa Clara County, CA | 33 km (20 mi) | SSE | earthquakes near Santa Clara County |
| Contra Costa County, CA | 49 km (30 mi) | NNW | earthquakes near Contra Costa County |
| San Mateo County, CA | 49 km (30 mi) | W | earthquakes near San Mateo County |
| Santa Cruz County, CA | 56 km (35 mi) | SSW | earthquakes near Santa Cruz County |
| San Joaquin County, CA | 69 km (43 mi) | NE | earthquakes near San Joaquin County |
Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.
Aftershocks so far
54 earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.
- 1.6 10km ESE of Alum Rock, CA
- 2.2 2km S of Los Altos Hills, CA
- 1.8 15km NNE of Morgan Hill, CA
- 1.7 3km S of Los Altos Hills, CA
- 1.6 3km ESE of Union City, CA
- 1.7 16km E of Seven Trees, CA
- 1.9 16km E of Seven Trees, CA
- 3.0 8km NE of Alum Rock, CA
- 1.8 9km ENE of Milpitas, CA
- 1.8 10km ESE of Livermore, CA
- 2.1 9km ENE of Milpitas, CA
- 2.0 14km SE of Livermore, CA
- 2.1 2km SSW of Los Altos Hills, CA
- 2.8 3km S of Los Altos Hills, CA
- 1.8 2km S of Los Altos Hills, 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.