M2.9 earthquake 13km ESE of Avalon, CA
A magnitude 2.9 earthquake struck 13km ESE of Avalon, CA on Mon, Oct 23, 1939, 2:04 AM GMT-8 (10:04 UTC), 6 km (4 mi) below the surface.
A larger quake followed: M3.9 7km SSW of Seal Beach, CA. This one was a foreshock.
Map
Where this earthquake was located, with the others nearby. Select one for its page.
The earthquake
- Magnitude
- 2.9 (ml), micro
- Local time
- UTC
- 1939-10-23 10:04:39 UTC
- Depth
- 6.0 km (3.7 mi), shallow
- Epicenter
- 33.309° N, 118.197° W
- Region
- California
- Tsunami flag
- No
- Status
- Reviewed by a seismologist
Did you feel it?
No one has reported feeling this quake to the USGS.
How well it is located
Reviewed by a seismologist.
- Location uncertainty
- About 4.3 km horizontally, 31.6 km in depth
- Magnitude uncertainty
- ±0.04
- Depth from
- Operator assigned
- Station coverage gap
- 274°, poorly surrounded by stations
- Stations used
- 4
Nearest places
Distance and direction from each place to the epicenter, with its forecast.
Nearby
Within 100 km, magnitude 1.5 and up: 8 in the 60 days after this one and 2 in the 30 days before it.
After
- 2.831km WNW of Avalon, CA · 31744 days ago · 6 km deep · 43 km away
- 3.97km SSW of Seal Beach, CA · 31734 days ago · 6 km deep · 43 km away
- 1.92km WNW of Hawthorne, CA · 31729 days ago · 6 km deep · 70 km away
- 2.46km NNW of Santa Monica, CA · 31725 days ago · 3 km deep · 90 km away
- 2.42km NNE of Anaheim, CA · 31720 days ago · 6 km deep · 67 km away
- 1.92km SE of Huntington Beach, CA · 31718 days ago · 6 km deep · 45 km away
- 2.13km SSW of Palos Verdes Estates, CA · 31708 days ago · 6 km deep · 55 km away
- 2.22km NE of Universal City, CA · 31690 days ago · 14 km deep · 95 km away
Before
Earthquakes todayCalifornia earthquakesLive radar here
Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event ci3365131. Read Tue, Sep 22, 2026, 9:15 AM UTC.