QuakeIndex

Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist

M 2.9md

Earthquake near Corcoran, CA

No earthquake was likely felt in Corcoran in the 24 hours to 2:33 am PST (10:33 UTC). The last one was M 2.9, 8 km (5 mi) WNW, at 11:37 am PDT on 21 August 2026, estimated intensity II (weak) in town. Every earthquake near Corcoran

This page: a magnitude 2.9 earthquake was recorded 8 km (5 mi) west-northwest of Corcoran, CA, at 11:37 am PDT on 21 August 2026 (18:37 UTC), 26 km deep.

USGS: 8 km WNW of Corcoran, CA

74 km (46 mi) S of Fresno, CA · 22 km (14 mi) S of Hanford, CA

11:37 am PDT, Aug 21, 2026 · · 26 km deep · released about 570 lb of TNT

10 km30 km60 km120 km N Kings County 17 kmFresno County 70 kmTulare County 78 kmSan Luis Obispo County 110 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
11:37 am PDT on 21 August 2026 ()
Where
8 km (5 mi) west-northwest of Corcoran, CA · earthquakes near Corcoran
Magnitude
M 2.9 (md)
Depth
26 km below the surface
Felt
no reports yet
Nearest
Kings County, 17 km WSW
Status
Reviewed by a seismologist

USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 49 days ago

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 14 km (9 mi) from the epicentre. In Corcoran, 8 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.

Likely felt in: Corcoran 8 km, intensity II. Estimated for each town centre; each link is that town's own record.

How big was it?

This earthquake released about 570 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.

  1. Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 27,000× the energy of this one
  2. Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 19,000× the energy of this one
  3. Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 1.7× the energy of this one
  4. This earthquake M 2.9 about 570 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 2025-02-14 — about 130 times the energy of this one.

Before 2016, the USGS record lists one earthquake of M5 or more within 50 km:

  1. 5.6 8 km SW of Huron, California · 46 km W 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 36.1317, -119.6448. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Nearby places

PlaceDistanceDirection from the epicentre
Kings County, CA 17 km (10 mi) WSW earthquakes near Kings County
Fresno County, CA 70 km (43 mi) N earthquakes near Fresno County
Tulare County, CA 78 km (49 mi) E earthquakes near Tulare County
San Luis Obispo County, CA 110 km (68 mi) SW earthquakes near San Luis Obispo County
Kern County, CA 120 km (75 mi) SE earthquakes near Kern County
Merced County, CA 152 km (95 mi) NW earthquakes near Merced County

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

Aftershocks so far

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

  1. 2.0 13 km S of Kettleman City, CA
  2. 1.4 11 km NNW of Avenal, CA
  3. 2.3 9 km W of Corcoran, CA
  4. 1.3 9 km NNW of Avenal, CA
  5. 2.2 10 km SE of Huron, CA
  6. 1.9 15 km ENE of Kettleman City, CA
  7. 2.6 11 km NNW of Corcoran, 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.