California earthquakes

M1.8 earthquake 25 km SSW of Kingvale, California

A magnitude 1.8 earthquake struck 25 km SSW of Kingvale, California on Thu, Jul 16, 1981, 10:26 PM PDT (05:26 UTC), 9 km (6 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M3.1 3 km WSW of Spring Garden, California. This one was a foreshock.

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Map

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

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The earthquake

Magnitude
1.8 (ma), micro
Local time
UTC
1981-07-17 05:26:17 UTC
Depth
9.4 km (5.8 mi), shallow
Epicenter
39.103° N, 120.510° 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 0.7 km horizontally, 1.7 km in depth
Magnitude uncertainty
±0.19
Depth from
From location
Station coverage gap
297°, poorly surrounded by stations
Stations used
10

Nearest places

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

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 1.5 and up: 15 in the 60 days after this one and 8 in the 30 days before it.

After

  1. 2.0Northern California · 16506 days ago · 13 km deep · 82 km away
  2. 1.66 km NW of Plumas Eureka (historical), California · 16505 days ago · 1 km deep · 80 km away
  3. 2.96 km NNW of Incline Village, Nevada · 16504 days ago · 4 km deep · 49 km away
  4. 1.94 km SE of Palermo, California · 16501 days ago · 6 km deep · 92 km away
  5. 2.14 km SSW of Whitehawk, California · 16500 days ago · 14 km deep · 65 km away
  6. 1.810 km NE of Chilcoot-Vinton, California · 16494 days ago · 9 km deep · 95 km away
  7. 2.91 km ENE of Clipper Mills, California · 16494 days ago · 8 km deep · 73 km away
  8. 1.76 km SSE of Palermo, California · 16478 days ago · 1 km deep · 91 km away
  9. 1.51 km E of Oroville, California · 16477 days ago · 10 km deep · 99 km away
  10. 2.011 km NE of Soda Springs, California · 16473 days ago · 12 km deep · 39 km away
  11. 2.010 km SSW of Markleeville, California · 16468 days ago · 12 km deep · 80 km away
  12. 3.13 km WSW of Spring Garden, California · 16466 days ago · 0 km deep · 91 km away
  13. 2.66 km S of Kingvale, California · 16464 days ago · 11 km deep · 19 km away
  14. 2.14 km SE of Palermo, California · 16458 days ago · 6 km deep · 91 km away
  15. 2.64 km SSE of Floriston, California · 16452 days ago · 14 km deep · 52 km away

Before

  1. 2.54 km SE of Palermo, California · 16511 days ago · 7 km deep · 92 km away
  2. 2.54 km SE of Palermo, California · 16512 days ago · 7 km deep · 92 km away
  3. 2.03 km ESE of Palermo, California · 16513 days ago · 4 km deep · 92 km away
  4. 1.94 km SE of Palermo, California · 16525 days ago · 7 km deep · 92 km away
  5. 1.84 km SE of Palermo, California · 16526 days ago · 5 km deep · 92 km away
  6. 3.45 km SE of Palermo, California · 16526 days ago · 7 km deep · 91 km away
  7. 2.84 km ESE of Palermo, California · 16534 days ago · 5 km deep · 91 km away
  8. 1.81 km NNE of Clipper Mills, California · 16535 days ago · 7 km deep · 74 km away

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Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event nc1065648. Read Tue, Sep 29, 2026, 1:52 AM UTC.