QuakeIndex

Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist

M 2.5md

Earthquake near Palo Cedro, CA

No earthquake was likely felt in Palo Cedro in the 24 hours to 9:29 am PST (17:29 UTC). The last one was M 2.7, 16 km (10 mi) SSW, at 7:24 pm PDT on 5 August 2026, estimated intensity II (weak) in town; 1 felt report to USGS. Every earthquake near Palo Cedro

This page: a magnitude 2.5 earthquake was recorded 5 km (3 mi) southwest of Palo Cedro, CA, at 7:55 pm PST on 9 February 2023 (03:55 UTC), 29 km deep. 3 people have reported feeling it to USGS.

USGS: 5km SW of Palo Cedro, CA

9 km (6 mi) ESE of Redding, CA · 94 km (58 mi) NNW of Chico, CA

7:55 pm PST, Feb 9, 2023 · · 29 km deep · released about 160 lb of TNT

Every earthquake near Palo Cedro Felt it? Tell USGS Check my area
10 km30 km60 km120 km N Shasta County 32 kmTehama County 45 kmTrinity County 72 kmGlenn County 104 kmButte County 112 kmSiskiyou County 120 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
7:55 pm PST on 9 February 2023 ()
Where
5 km (3 mi) southwest of Palo Cedro, CA · earthquakes near Palo Cedro
Magnitude
M 2.5 (md)
Depth
29 km below the surface
Felt
3 reports · strongest reported intensity II
Nearest
Shasta County, 32 km NE
Status
Reviewed by a seismologist

USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 1307 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 Palo Cedro, 5 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: Anderson, Redding, Bella Vista, Shasta Lake, Shasta.

How big was it?

This earthquake released about 160 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 3.5 would have released about 32 times as much.

  1. Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 95,000× the energy of this one
  2. Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 68,000× the energy of this one
  3. Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 6× the energy of this one
  4. This earthquake M 2.5 about 160 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 one earthquake of M5 or more within 50 km:

  1. 5.1 7km NW of Redding, CA · 16 km NW 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 40.5307, -122.2728. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Nearby places

PlaceDistanceDirection from the epicentre
Shasta County, CA 32 km (20 mi) NE earthquakes near Shasta County
Tehama County, CA 45 km (28 mi) S earthquakes near Tehama County
Trinity County, CA 72 km (45 mi) W earthquakes near Trinity County
Glenn County, CA 104 km (64 mi) S earthquakes near Glenn County
Butte County, CA 112 km (69 mi) SSE earthquakes near Butte County
Siskiyou County, CA 120 km (74 mi) N earthquakes near Siskiyou County

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

Aftershocks so far

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

  1. 2.3 13 km NNE of Red Bluff, CA
  2. 1.7 9 km NE of Shasta Lake, CA
  3. 2.2 4 km ESE of Round Mountain, CA
  4. 2.4 14 km NNE of Red Bluff, CA
  5. 1.5 4 km NE of Millville, CA
  6. 1.5 0 km WSW of Shasta Lake, CA
  7. 2.4 18 km WSW of Shasta, CA
  8. 1.8 5 km E of Round Mountain, CA
  9. 1.9 5 km E of Round Mountain, CA
  10. 1.9 13 km NNE of Shingletown, CA
  11. 1.8 9 km NE of Shasta Lake, CA
  12. 1.5 18 km NNE of Bella Vista, CA
  13. 2.2 13 km NNE of Shingletown, CA
  14. 1.6 8 km NNW of Bella Vista, CA
  15. 1.6 14 km NNE of Shingletown, 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.