California earthquakes

M1.6 earthquake 8 km NE of Gilroy, California

A magnitude 1.6 earthquake struck 8 km NE of Gilroy, California on Wed, Jan 21, 1981, 10:53 AM PST (18:53 UTC), 6 km (4 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M2.4 23 km NE of Soledad, 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), micro
Local time
UTC
1981-01-21 18:53:36 UTC
Depth
6.0 km (3.7 mi), shallow
Epicenter
37.049° N, 121.495° 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 0.3 km horizontally, 0.7 km in depth
Magnitude uncertainty
±0.12
Depth from
From location
Station coverage gap
65°
Stations used
20

Nearest places

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

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 1.5 and up: 180 in the 60 days after this one and 0 in the 30 days before it.

After

  1. 2.423 km NE of Soledad, California · 16668 days ago · 8 km deep · 65 km away
  2. 2.04 km ESE of Aromas, California · 16668 days ago · 6 km deep · 22 km away
  3. 2.4Central California · 16668 days ago · 3 km deep · 13 km away
  4. 1.511 km E of Blackhawk, California · 16668 days ago · 5 km deep · 91 km away
  5. 2.536 km NE of King City, California · 16668 days ago · 13 km deep · 87 km away
  6. 2.224 km ENE of Greenfield, California · 16667 days ago · 5 km deep · 84 km away
  7. 1.54 km NNE of Morgan Hill, California · 16667 days ago · 5 km deep · 19 km away
  8. 2.75 km ESE of Aromas, California · 16666 days ago · 6 km deep · 22 km away
  9. 1.715 km SSE of Tres Pinos, California · 16666 days ago · 3 km deep · 48 km away
  10. 2.313 km S of Tres Pinos, California · 16666 days ago · 5 km deep · 46 km away
  11. 1.63 km WNW of San Juan Bautista, California · 16666 days ago · 1 km deep · 23 km away
  12. 1.57 km E of East Foothills, California · 16665 days ago · 9 km deep · 44 km away
  13. 1.67 km E of East Foothills, California · 16665 days ago · 9 km deep · 44 km away
  14. 1.67 km E of East Foothills, California · 16665 days ago · 9 km deep · 44 km away
  15. 1.69 km NNE of Livermore, California · 16665 days ago · 12 km deep · 81 km away
  16. 2.324 km NE of Greenfield, California · 16664 days ago · 1 km deep · 76 km away
  17. 1.69 km NW of Hollister, California · 16664 days ago · 2 km deep · 14 km away
  18. 1.83 km S of Communications Hill, California · 16664 days ago · 5 km deep · 40 km away
  19. 1.84 km SE of Aromas, California · 16664 days ago · 7 km deep · 23 km away
  20. 2.5Northern California · 16664 days ago · 10 km deep · 51 km away
  21. 1.96 km SW of Monte Sereno, California · 16664 days ago · 10 km deep · 51 km away
  22. 2.726 km NE of Greenfield, California · 16663 days ago · 9 km deep · 76 km away
  23. 1.59 km ESE of East Foothills, California · 16663 days ago · 8 km deep · 39 km away
  24. 1.811 km SW of Brentwood, California · 16662 days ago · 14 km deep · 93 km away
  25. 1.921 km NE of Soledad, California · 16662 days ago · 4 km deep · 64 km away
  26. 2.11 km NE of San Leandro, California · 16662 days ago · 6 km deep · 95 km away
  27. 1.612 km E of Big Sur, California · 16662 days ago · 7 km deep · 90 km away
  28. 1.78 km N of Pacific Grove, California · 16661 days ago · 5 km deep · 54 km away
  29. 2.39 km NE of San Martin, California · 16661 days ago · 8 km deep · 11 km away
  30. 1.620 km NE of Tres Pinos, California · 16659 days ago · 1 km deep · 37 km away
  31. 3.09 km SW of Brentwood, California · 16659 days ago · 17 km deep · 94 km away
  32. 2.315 km SSE of Livermore, California · 16659 days ago · 1 km deep · 60 km away
  33. 2.521 km NE of Soledad, California · 16659 days ago · 3 km deep · 61 km away
  34. 2.121 km NE of Soledad, California · 16658 days ago · 3 km deep · 60 km away
  35. 2.224 km NE of Greenfield, California · 16658 days ago · 8 km deep · 76 km away
  36. 1.622 km NE of Soledad, California · 16658 days ago · 6 km deep · 58 km away
  37. 1.622 km NNE of Soledad, California · 16657 days ago · 4 km deep · 55 km away
  38. 1.613 km SE of Tres Pinos, California · 16657 days ago · 3 km deep · 46 km away
  39. 2.013 km S of Tres Pinos, California · 16657 days ago · 4 km deep · 46 km away
  40. 1.825 km NE of King City, California · 16657 days ago · 0 km deep · 86 km away
  41. 2.77 km ENE of San Martin, California · 16656 days ago · 3 km deep · 7 km away
  42. 1.52 km WSW of Cupertino, California · 16656 days ago · 4 km deep · 58 km away
  43. 1.82 km NNW of Hollister, California · 16655 days ago · 7 km deep · 20 km away
  44. 2.19 km SSE of Sunol, California · 16654 days ago · 9 km deep · 61 km away
  45. 1.523 km ENE of Soledad, California · 16654 days ago · 6 km deep · 73 km away
  46. 2.12 km NNW of Hollister, California · 16654 days ago · 7 km deep · 21 km away
  47. 2.022 km NNE of Soledad, California · 16654 days ago · 2 km deep · 56 km away
  48. 1.99 km NNW of Hollister, California · 16654 days ago · 4 km deep · 13 km away
  49. 1.75 km WNW of San Juan Bautista, California · 16653 days ago · 5 km deep · 23 km away
  50. 1.712 km ESE of Livermore, California · 16653 days ago · 8 km deep · 67 km away
  51. 1.824 km ENE of Greenfield, California · 16653 days ago · 7 km deep · 81 km away
  52. 2.3Northern California · 16653 days ago · 8 km deep · 49 km away
  53. 1.63 km S of San Juan Bautista, California · 16653 days ago · 6 km deep · 26 km away
  54. 1.911 km E of Blackhawk, California · 16652 days ago · 10 km deep · 91 km away
  55. 1.59 km SSW of Tres Pinos, California · 16652 days ago · 3 km deep · 39 km away
  56. 1.825 km NE of King City, California · 16652 days ago · 8 km deep · 87 km away
  57. 2.49 km ESE of Gilroy, California · 16651 days ago · 5 km deep · 8 km away
  58. 1.69 km ESE of East Foothills, California · 16651 days ago · 9 km deep · 40 km away
  59. 1.69 km ESE of Gilroy, California · 16651 days ago · 5 km deep · 8 km away
  60. 1.621 km NE of Soledad, California · 16651 days ago · 7 km deep · 63 km away

The first 60 of 180.

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Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event nc1059480. Read Tue, Sep 22, 2026, 4:01 PM UTC.