Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist
M 1.9md
Earthquake near Cambria, CA
No earthquake was likely felt in Cambria in the 24 hours to 9:06 am PST (17:06 UTC). The last one was M 2.3, 18 km (11 mi) NNE, at 5:04 pm PDT on 21 September 2026, estimated intensity II (weak) in town. Every earthquake near Cambria
This page: a magnitude 1.9 earthquake was recorded 12 km (7 mi) north-northeast of Cambria, CA, at 5:05 am PDT on 23 April 2021 (12:05 UTC), 8.9 km deep.
USGS: 12km NNE of Cambria, CA
- When
- 5:05 am PDT on 23 April 2021 ()
- Where
- 12 km (7 mi) north-northeast of Cambria, CA · earthquakes near Cambria
- Magnitude
- M 1.9 (md)
- Depth
- 8.9 km below the surface
- Felt
- no reports yet
- Nearest
- San Luis Obispo County, 63 km ESE
- Nearest mapped fault
- Hosgri fault, 13 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 2028 days ago
Earthquake alerts for Cambria, CA
Get a notification in this browser when USGS records an earthquake near Cambria, 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 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 11 km (7 mi) from the epicentre. In Cambria, 12 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.
Earthquakes near other towns within 30 km: Lake Nacimiento, Cayucos.
How big was it?
This earthquake released about 20 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 2.9 would have released about 32 times as much.
- Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 760,000× the energy of this one
- Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 540,000× the energy of this one
- Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 48× the energy of this one
- This earthquake M 1.9 about 20 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 9 earthquakes of M5 or more within 50 km; the five largest:
- 6.5 10 km NE of San Simeon, California · 6 km NW of this epicentre
- 6.2 28km NW of Cambria, CA · 26 km WNW of this epicentre
- 5.8 1934 Parkfield, California Earthquake · 40 km ENE of this epicentre
- 5.7 Southwest of Cambria, California · 23 km SW of this epicentre
- 5.2 26km NNW of Lake Nacimiento, CA · 33 km NNE 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 35.6663, -121.0493. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| San Luis Obispo County, CA | 63 km (39 mi) | ESE | earthquakes near San Luis Obispo County |
| Monterey County, CA | 68 km (42 mi) | NNW | earthquakes near Monterey County |
| San Benito County, CA | 105 km (65 mi) | N | earthquakes near San Benito County |
| Kings County, CA | 120 km (75 mi) | ENE | earthquakes near Kings County |
Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.
Aftershocks so far
39 earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.
- 1.6 10km NNE of San Simeon, CA
- 1.7 8km SW of Atascadero, CA
- 1.6 11km WSW of Templeton, CA
- 2.3 13km NNE of Cambria, CA
- 1.7 22km SSE of Lopez Point, CA
- 1.7 22km SSE of Lopez Point, CA
- 2.3 11km WSW of Morro Bay, CA
- 1.7 11km WSW of Templeton, CA
- 2.0 17km N of San Simeon, CA
- 1.8 13km N of San Simeon, CA
- 1.9 23km NNW of San Simeon, CA
- 1.8 27km NW of San Simeon, CA
- 1.7 22km NW of San Simeon, CA
- 1.9 31km WNW of San Simeon, CA
- 1.5 6km NNE of Santa Margarita, 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.