California earthquakes

M1.8 earthquake 14 km SSE of Avenal, California

A magnitude 1.8 earthquake struck 14 km SSE of Avenal, California on Tue, Dec 1, 1981, 1:03 AM PST (09:03 UTC), 22 km (14 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M3.1 22 km NE of San Ardo, California. This one was a foreshock.

Avenal 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
1.8 (md), micro
Local time
UTC
1981-12-01 09:03:35 UTC
Depth
22.1 km (13.8 mi), shallow
Epicenter
35.889° N, 120.062° 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 2.9 km horizontally, 0.6 km in depth
Magnitude uncertainty
±0.06
Depth from
From location
Station coverage gap
299°, poorly surrounded by stations
Stations used
12

Nearest places

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

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 1.5 and up: 36 in the 60 days after this one and 18 in the 30 days before it.

After

  1. 3.122 km NE of San Ardo, California · 16364 days ago · 8 km deep · 68 km away
  2. 1.97 km NE of Cambria, California · 16358 days ago · 2 km deep · 92 km away
  3. 1.638 km W of Three Rocks, California · 16355 days ago · 7 km deep · 98 km away
  4. 2.623 km NE of San Ardo, California · 16355 days ago · 8 km deep · 68 km away
  5. 2.521 km NW of Parkfield, California · 16353 days ago · 4 km deep · 51 km away
  6. 2.038 km W of Three Rocks, California · 16352 days ago · 7 km deep · 100 km away
  7. 1.638 km W of Three Rocks, California · 16352 days ago · 6 km deep · 100 km away
  8. 3.038 km W of Three Rocks, California · 16352 days ago · 7 km deep · 100 km away
  9. 1.632 km W of Three Rocks, California · 16351 days ago · 28 km deep · 94 km away
  10. 2.638 km W of Three Rocks, California · 16351 days ago · 6 km deep · 99 km away
  11. 1.537 km W of Three Rocks, California · 16351 days ago · -1 km deep · 99 km away
  12. 2.538 km W of Three Rocks, California · 16350 days ago · 6 km deep · 100 km away
  13. 2.037 km W of Three Rocks, California · 16349 days ago · 7 km deep · 99 km away
  14. 1.938 km W of Three Rocks, California · 16349 days ago · 5 km deep · 99 km away
  15. 1.914 km WSW of Three Rocks, California · 16349 days ago · 14 km deep · 78 km away
  16. 1.737 km W of Three Rocks, California · 16348 days ago · 5 km deep · 99 km away
  17. 1.931 km W of Three Rocks, California · 16344 days ago · 13 km deep · 96 km away
  18. 1.812 km W of Three Rocks, California · 16343 days ago · 10 km deep · 78 km away
  19. 2.024 km NE of San Lucas, California · 16342 days ago · 6 km deep · 79 km away
  20. 1.514 km SW of Coalinga, California · 16341 days ago · 6 km deep · 43 km away
  21. 1.610 km SSE of Three Rocks, California · 16341 days ago · 5 km deep · 64 km away
  22. 1.82 km SSW of Edna, California · 16340 days ago · 0 km deep · 94 km away
  23. 2.024 km NE of King City, California · 16339 days ago · 0 km deep · 98 km away
  24. 1.817 km E of Edna, California · 16338 days ago · 8 km deep · 80 km away
  25. 2.55 km SSE of Lemoore, California · 16337 days ago · 12 km deep · 48 km away
  26. 1.724 km ENE of San Lucas, California · 16336 days ago · 5 km deep · 74 km away
  27. 2.09 km ENE of Cayucos, California · 16331 days ago · 4 km deep · 81 km away
  28. 1.911 km NNW of Huron, California · 16330 days ago · 18 km deep · 46 km away
  29. 1.921 km WSW of Three Rocks, California · 16330 days ago · 11 km deep · 80 km away
  30. 1.73 km N of San Luis Obispo, California · 16326 days ago · 0 km deep · 84 km away
  31. 2.124 km NE of San Lucas, California · 16320 days ago · 4 km deep · 86 km away
  32. 1.733 km W of Three Rocks, California · 16317 days ago · 12 km deep · 89 km away
  33. 1.610 km NNE of Cayucos, California · 16315 days ago · 8 km deep · 81 km away
  34. 2.121 km SW of Three Rocks, California · 16313 days ago · 38 km deep · 71 km away
  35. 2.122 km NE of San Lucas, California · 16312 days ago · 5 km deep · 83 km away
  36. 2.78 km ENE of Kettleman City, California · 16312 days ago · 10 km deep · 24 km away

Before

  1. 1.68 km SW of Templeton, California · 16368 days ago · 4 km deep · 78 km away
  2. 1.86 km WNW of San Ardo, California · 16370 days ago · 6 km deep · 83 km away
  3. 1.76 km WNW of San Ardo, California · 16370 days ago · 6 km deep · 83 km away
  4. 2.023 km NE of King City, California · 16371 days ago · 4 km deep · 94 km away
  5. 2.423 km ENE of San Lucas, California · 16371 days ago · 5 km deep · 74 km away
  6. 2.116 km NW of Parkfield, California · 16372 days ago · 5 km deep · 47 km away
  7. 1.822 km SW of Three Rocks, California · 16376 days ago · 16 km deep · 72 km away
  8. 1.625 km NE of San Lucas, California · 16378 days ago · 7 km deep · 80 km away
  9. 2.29km ENE of Buttonwillow, CA · 16384 days ago · 5 km deep · 79 km away
  10. 1.822 km NNE of San Lucas, California · 16386 days ago · 4 km deep · 87 km away
  11. 1.520 km SW of Three Rocks, California · 16388 days ago · 17 km deep · 71 km away
  12. 1.726 km NE of San Ardo, California · 16389 days ago · 5 km deep · 67 km away
  13. 2.022 km NE of San Lucas, California · 16389 days ago · 7 km deep · 82 km away
  14. 1.524 km ENE of San Lucas, California · 16391 days ago · 5 km deep · 75 km away
  15. 1.62 km ESE of San Ardo, California · 16393 days ago · 10 km deep · 75 km away
  16. 1.87 km SW of Templeton, California · 16393 days ago · 5 km deep · 77 km away
  17. 2.411 km WSW of Huron, California · 16393 days ago · 8 km deep · 33 km away
  18. 2.424 km NE of King City, California · 16395 days ago · 9 km deep · 96 km away

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Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event nc1069883 (also filed as ci102452). Read Wed, Sep 23, 2026, 5:15 AM UTC.