California earthquakes

M3.6 earthquake 14 km W of Aspen Springs, California

A magnitude 3.6 earthquake struck 14 km W of Aspen Springs, California on Thu, Aug 13, 1981, 1:31 PM PDT (20:31 UTC), 3 km (2 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M4.2 California-Nevada border region. This one was a foreshock.

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

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The earthquake

Magnitude: 3.6 (ml), minor
Local time: Thu, Aug 13, 1981, 1:31 PM PDT
UTC: 1981-08-13 20:31:22 UTC
Depth: 3.1 km (1.9 mi), shallow
Epicenter: 37.535° N, 118.877° 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 0.3 km horizontally, 0.5 km in depth
Depth from: From location
Station coverage gap: 177°
Stations used: 26

Nearest places

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

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 1.5 and up: 200 in the 60 days after this one and 0 in the 30 days before it.

After

The first 60 of 200.

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Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event nc1066708 (also filed as ci521062, usp0001f8x). Read Tue, Sep 22, 2026, 4:14 PM UTC.