QuakeIndex

Earthquake · automatic estimate, may change

M 2.6md

Earthquake near Madera, CA

No earthquake was likely felt in Madera in the 24 hours to 9:15 pm PST (05:15 UTC). The last one was M 2.6, 5 km (3 mi) WNW, at 5:14 am PDT on 29 October 2026, estimated intensity II (weak) in town. Every earthquake near Madera

This page: a magnitude 2.6 earthquake was recorded 5 km (3 mi) west-northwest of Madera, CA, at 5:14 am PDT on 29 October 2026 (12:14 UTC), 12 km deep. The magnitude and location are an automatic first estimate and may change.

USGS: 5 km WNW of Madera, CA

in Madera, CA · 36 km (22 mi) NW of Fresno, CA

5:14 am PDT, Oct 29, 2026 · · 12 km deep · released about 240 lb of TNT

10 km30 km60 km120 km N Madera County 41 kmFresno County 48 kmMerced County 59 kmMariposa County 68 kmSan Benito County 96 kmStanislaus County 102 kmKings County 105 kmTuolumne County 116 km
Distance rings around the epicentre, with the nearest towns at their true direction. Not a shaking map — see the USGS ShakeMap for that.
When
5:14 am PDT on 29 October 2026 ()
Where
5 km (3 mi) west-northwest of Madera, CA · earthquakes near Madera
Magnitude
M 2.6 (md)
Depth
12 km below the surface
Felt
no reports yet
Nearest
Madera County, 41 km NE
Status
Automatic — a machine’s first estimate, which may change

USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 14 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 21 km (13 mi) from the epicentre. In Madera, 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: Madera Acres, Parkwood, Parksdale, Fairmead, Chowchilla, Bonadelle Ranchos-Madera Ranchos.

How big was it?

This earthquake released about 240 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 3.6 would have released about 32 times as much.

  1. Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 63,000× the energy of this one
  2. Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 45,000× the energy of this one
  3. Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 4× the energy of this one
  4. This earthquake M 2.6 about 240 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 36.9845, -120.1102. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Nearby places

PlaceDistanceDirection from the epicentre
Madera County, CA 41 km (25 mi) NE earthquakes near Madera County
Fresno County, CA 48 km (30 mi) ESE earthquakes near Fresno County
Merced County, CA 59 km (37 mi) WNW earthquakes near Merced County
Mariposa County, CA 68 km (42 mi) NNE earthquakes near Mariposa County
San Benito County, CA 96 km (60 mi) WSW earthquakes near San Benito County
Stanislaus County, CA 102 km (63 mi) NW earthquakes near Stanislaus County

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

Aftershocks so far

No further earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.

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.