QuakeIndex

Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist

M 2.1md

Earthquake near Mariposa, CA

No earthquake was likely felt in Mariposa in the 24 hours to 1:27 am PST (09:27 UTC). The last one was M 5.7, 222 km (138 mi) NNE, at 6:29 pm PDT on 13 April 2026, estimated intensity II (weak) in town; 6,515 felt reports to USGS. Every earthquake near Mariposa

This page: a magnitude 2.1 earthquake was recorded 17 km (11 mi) south-southwest of Mariposa, CA, at 12:11 pm PDT on 9 September 2022 (19:11 UTC), 18 km deep.

USGS: 17km SSW of Mariposa, CA

66 km (41 mi) NNW of Fresno, CA · 39 km (24 mi) E of Merced, CA

12:11 pm PDT, Sep 9, 2022 · · 18 km deep · released about 38 lb of TNT

10 km30 km60 km120 km N Mariposa County 28 kmMadera County 30 kmMerced County 62 kmFresno County 73 kmTuolumne County 76 kmStanislaus County 88 kmCalaveras County 104 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
12:11 pm PDT on 9 September 2022 ()
Where
17 km (11 mi) south-southwest of Mariposa, CA · earthquakes near Mariposa
Magnitude
M 2.1 (md)
Depth
18 km below the surface
Felt
no reports yet
Nearest
Mariposa County, 28 km NNE
Status
Reviewed by a seismologist

USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 1524 days ago

This was a minor earthquake. Quakes this small are rarely felt and do not cause damage.

At this magnitude and depth it was probably too small to be felt, even directly above it. In Mariposa, 17 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: Le Grand, Midpines, Planada, Ahwahnee, Yosemite Lakes.

How big was it?

This earthquake released about 38 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 3.1 would have released about 32 times as much.

  1. Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 390,000× the energy of this one
  2. Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 280,000× the energy of this one
  3. Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 25× the energy of this one
  4. This earthquake M 2.1 about 38 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 since 1900 lists no earthquake of M5 or more within 50 km.

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 37.3430, -120.0422. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Nearby places

PlaceDistanceDirection from the epicentre
Mariposa County, CA 28 km (18 mi) NNE earthquakes near Mariposa County
Madera County, CA 30 km (19 mi) ESE earthquakes near Madera County
Merced County, CA 62 km (39 mi) WSW earthquakes near Merced County
Fresno County, CA 73 km (46 mi) SSE earthquakes near Fresno County
Tuolumne County, CA 76 km (47 mi) N earthquakes near Tuolumne County
Stanislaus County, CA 88 km (55 mi) WNW earthquakes near Stanislaus County

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

Aftershocks so far

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

  1. 2.1 5 km ENE of Bonadelle Ranchos-Madera Ranchos, CA
  2. 2.1 6km ENE of Bonadelle Ranchos-Madera Ranchos, CA
  3. 2.8 2km SSW of North Fork, CA
  4. 2.0 9km SSW of Mariposa, CA
  5. 2.3 10km S of Mariposa, CA
  6. 2.2 9km SSW of Mariposa, CA
  7. 2.2 10km SSW of Mariposa, CA
  8. 2.0 11km S of Mariposa, CA
  9. 2.0 6km ENE of Bonadelle Ranchos-Madera Ranchos, CA
  10. 2.2 9km SSW of Mariposa, CA
  11. 1.6 10km SSW of Mariposa, CA
  12. 1.6 12km NNW of Friant, CA
  13. 2.3 21km SSW of Bootjack, CA
  14. 1.8 5km ENE of Bonadelle Ranchos-Madera Ranchos, CA
  15. 1.6 11km SSW of Mariposa, 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.