California earthquakes

M1.6 earthquake 8 km ENE of Gilroy, California

A magnitude 1.6 earthquake struck 8 km ENE of Gilroy, California on Wed, Sep 5, 1979, 11:23 PM PDT (06:23 UTC), 7 km (5 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M3.4 3 km S of San Juan Bautista, California. This one was a foreshock.

Gilroy forecastMore in California

Map

Where this earthquake was located, with the others nearby. Select one for its page.

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The earthquake

Magnitude
1.6 (Md, duration), micro
Magnitude from
Northern California Seismic System
Local time
UTC
1979-09-06 06:23:57 UTC
Depth
7.4 km (4.6 mi), shallow
Epicenter
37.022° N, 121.476° W
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 0.1 km horizontally, 0.3 km in depth
Magnitude uncertainty
±0.22
Depth from
From location
Station coverage gap
61°
Stations used
59

Nearest places

Distance and direction from each place to the epicenter, with its forecast.

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 1.5 and up: 173 in the 60 days after this one and 178 in the 30 days before it.

After

  1. 1.67 km NE of Gilroy, California · 17193 days ago · 8 km deep · 4 km away
  2. 1.87 km SW of Hollister, California · 17193 days ago · 11 km deep · 24 km away
  3. 1.67 km SW of Hollister, California · 17193 days ago · 11 km deep · 25 km away
  4. 2.39 km ENE of Gilroy, California · 17193 days ago · 9 km deep · 1 km away
  5. 2.224 km NE of Greenfield, California · 17193 days ago · 5 km deep · 72 km away
  6. 1.624 km NE of Greenfield, California · 17193 days ago · 5 km deep · 72 km away
  7. 1.6Central California · 17193 days ago · 3 km deep · 38 km away
  8. 2.325 km NE of King City, California · 17192 days ago · 4 km deep · 83 km away
  9. 2.024 km NE of Greenfield, California · 17192 days ago · 1 km deep · 72 km away
  10. 2.515 km SSE of Livermore, California · 17192 days ago · 8 km deep · 63 km away
  11. 1.69 km NE of Gilroy, California · 17192 days ago · 9 km deep · 5 km away
  12. 1.88 km ENE of Gilroy, California · 17191 days ago · 6 km deep · 1 km away
  13. 2.123 km NE of Soledad, California · 17191 days ago · 9 km deep · 59 km away
  14. 2.58 km ENE of Gilroy, California · 17191 days ago · 5 km deep · 3 km away
  15. 1.88 km ENE of Gilroy, California · 17191 days ago · 5 km deep · 1 km away
  16. 1.824 km NE of Greenfield, California · 17190 days ago · 5 km deep · 71 km away
  17. 2.218 km SW of Davenport, California · 17190 days ago · 17 km deep · 76 km away
  18. 3.09 km NE of San Martin, California · 17189 days ago · 7 km deep · 16 km away
  19. 2.212 km SSE of Davenport, California · 17189 days ago · 6 km deep · 62 km away
  20. 1.58 km ENE of Gilroy, California · 17189 days ago · 5 km deep · 3 km away
  21. 3.25 km W of Newman, California · 17189 days ago · 0 km deep · 49 km away
  22. 2.18 km ENE of San Martin, California · 17189 days ago · 6 km deep · 11 km away
  23. 1.67 km NE of Gilroy, California · 17188 days ago · 6 km deep · 3 km away
  24. 1.74 km SW of Tres Pinos, California · 17188 days ago · 8 km deep · 32 km away
  25. 1.622 km SE of Tres Pinos, California · 17188 days ago · 6 km deep · 52 km away
  26. 2.19 km SSW of Ridgemark, California · 17187 days ago · 6 km deep · 33 km away
  27. 1.69 km ENE of Gilroy, California · 17187 days ago · 9 km deep · 2 km away
  28. 3.12 km WNW of Aromas, California · 17186 days ago · 6 km deep · 22 km away
  29. 1.528 km SW of South Dos Palos, California · 17185 days ago · 2 km deep · 58 km away
  30. 2.18 km ENE of Gilroy, California · 17185 days ago · 6 km deep · 2 km away
  31. 2.28 km WSW of Newman, California · 17185 days ago · 0 km deep · 44 km away
  32. 3.08 km NE of Gilroy, California · 17185 days ago · 7 km deep · 4 km away
  33. 1.68 km S of Spreckels, California · 17184 days ago · 6 km deep · 55 km away
  34. 1.87 km E of San Martin, California · 17184 days ago · 4 km deep · 9 km away
  35. 1.626 km W of Volta, California · 17183 days ago · 3 km deep · 23 km away
  36. 1.81 km ENE of Tres Pinos, California · 17183 days ago · 8 km deep · 29 km away
  37. 2.811 km ESE of Gilroy, California · 17183 days ago · 7 km deep · 8 km away
  38. 2.0Central California · 17183 days ago · 8 km deep · 61 km away
  39. 2.19 km ENE of Gilroy, California · 17183 days ago · 9 km deep · 1 km away
  40. 1.830 km NE of King City, California · 17182 days ago · 5 km deep · 85 km away
  41. 2.44 km NE of Tres Pinos, California · 17182 days ago · 9 km deep · 29 km away
  42. 2.129 km ENE of Soledad, California · 17182 days ago · 9 km deep · 66 km away
  43. 2.821 km NE of Soledad, California · 17182 days ago · 8 km deep · 61 km away
  44. 3.08 km ENE of Gilroy, California · 17182 days ago · 6 km deep · 2 km away
  45. 1.67 km ENE of Gilroy, California · 17182 days ago · 3 km deep · 1 km away
  46. 2.29 km NE of Gilroy, California · 17181 days ago · 4 km deep · 5 km away
  47. 1.911 km ESE of Gilroy, California · 17181 days ago · 6 km deep · 7 km away
  48. 2.029 km ENE of Soledad, California · 17180 days ago · 8 km deep · 66 km away
  49. 2.229 km ENE of Soledad, California · 17180 days ago · 9 km deep · 66 km away
  50. 2.122 km ENE of Soledad, California · 17179 days ago · 2 km deep · 63 km away
  51. 2.718 km E of East Foothills, California · 17178 days ago · 6 km deep · 39 km away
  52. 1.6Central California · 17177 days ago · 7 km deep · 59 km away
  53. 2.218 km E of East Foothills, California · 17177 days ago · 5 km deep · 39 km away
  54. 2.39 km ESE of East Foothills, California · 17176 days ago · 8 km deep · 43 km away
  55. 1.94 km SSE of San Juan Bautista, California · 17176 days ago · 6 km deep · 24 km away
  56. 2.225 km NNE of King City, California · 17175 days ago · 5 km deep · 82 km away
  57. 1.58 km ENE of Gilroy, California · 17175 days ago · 6 km deep · 2 km away
  58. 2.23 km W of San Juan Bautista, California · 17173 days ago · 6 km deep · 22 km away
  59. 2.125 km ENE of Greenfield, California · 17173 days ago · 5 km deep · 78 km away
  60. 1.721 km NE of Soledad, California · 17173 days ago · 1 km deep · 55 km away

The first 60 of 173.

Before

  1. 2.14 km ENE of Livermore, California · 17194 days ago · 5 km deep · 79 km away
  2. 2.83 km ENE of Livermore, California · 17194 days ago · 3 km deep · 78 km away
  3. 2.04 km NE of Livermore, California · 17194 days ago · 8 km deep · 79 km away
  4. 1.810 km E of Gilroy, California · 17195 days ago · 7 km deep · 3 km away
  5. 2.59 km ENE of Gilroy, California · 17195 days ago · 9 km deep · 2 km away
  6. 1.928 km NE of Soledad, California · 17195 days ago · 11 km deep · 58 km away
  7. 1.617 km W of Three Rocks, California · 17196 days ago · 5 km deep · 99 km away
  8. 3.18 km NE of Gilroy, California · 17196 days ago · 5 km deep · 5 km away
  9. 1.88 km SE of San Juan Bautista, California · 17198 days ago · 5 km deep · 26 km away
  10. 2.09 km SSW of Ridgemark, California · 17198 days ago · 7 km deep · 32 km away
  11. 1.67 km ENE of Gilroy, California · 17198 days ago · 3 km deep · 3 km away
  12. 1.911 km E of Gilroy, California · 17198 days ago · 11 km deep · 4 km away
  13. 1.822 km ENE of Soledad, California · 17199 days ago · 5 km deep · 67 km away
  14. 1.96 km SSW of Livermore, California · 17200 days ago · 0 km deep · 74 km away
  15. 2.34 km ENE of Livermore, California · 17200 days ago · 5 km deep · 78 km away
  16. 1.815 km S of Tracy, California · 17200 days ago · 5 km deep · 64 km away
  17. 1.721 km NE of Soledad, California · 17200 days ago · 2 km deep · 58 km away
  18. 2.04 km N of East Foothills, California · 17201 days ago · 1 km deep · 54 km away
  19. 1.78 km W of Gilroy, California · 17201 days ago · 4 km deep · 16 km away
  20. 1.821 km NE of Soledad, California · 17201 days ago · 5 km deep · 60 km away

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Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event nc1047643. Read Fri, Oct 2, 2026, 5:37 PM UTC.