California earthquakes

M1.5 earthquake 9 km WSW of Markleeville, California

A magnitude 1.5 earthquake struck 9 km WSW of Markleeville, California on Wed, Mar 4, 1981, 10:06 PM PST (06:06 UTC), 2 km (1 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M1.8 11 km NNE of Bear Valley, California. This one was a foreshock.

Gardnerville Ranchos 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
1.5 (ma), micro
Local time
UTC
1981-03-05 06:06:56 UTC
Depth
1.8 km (1.1 mi), shallow
Epicenter
38.655° N, 119.881° 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 0.9 km horizontally, 7.3 km in depth
Magnitude uncertainty
±0.17
Depth from
From location
Station coverage gap
295°, poorly surrounded by stations
Stations used
9

Nearest places

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

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 1.5 and up: 27 in the 60 days after this one and 10 in the 30 days before it.

After

  1. 1.811 km NNE of Bear Valley, California · 16634 days ago · 0 km deep · 14 km away
  2. 1.810 km NNE of Bear Valley, California · 16634 days ago · 13 km deep · 15 km away
  3. 1.94 km WNW of Alpine Village, California · 16629 days ago · 11 km deep · 15 km away
  4. 1.89 km SE of Alta, California · 16629 days ago · 0 km deep · 92 km away
  5. 1.63 km SSW of Soda Springs, California · 16627 days ago · 15 km deep · 84 km away
  6. 3.58 km NNW of Truckee, California · 16614 days ago · 9 km deep · 88 km away
  7. 2.211 km NW of Truckee, California · 16614 days ago · 7 km deep · 90 km away
  8. 2.011 km NNW of Truckee, California · 16614 days ago · 11 km deep · 90 km away
  9. 2.011 km N of Truckee, California · 16614 days ago · 7 km deep · 90 km away
  10. 2.29 km NNW of Truckee, California · 16614 days ago · 12 km deep · 89 km away
  11. 2.39 km NNW of Truckee, California · 16614 days ago · 14 km deep · 88 km away
  12. 3.88 km NNW of Truckee, California · 16614 days ago · 5 km deep · 88 km away
  13. 2.39 km NNW of Truckee, California · 16614 days ago · 11 km deep · 89 km away
  14. 1.710 km NNW of Truckee, California · 16614 days ago · 13 km deep · 90 km away
  15. 2.99 km NW of Truckee, California · 16614 days ago · 14 km deep · 88 km away
  16. 3.010 km WNW of Bridgeport, California · 16614 days ago · 3 km deep · 63 km away
  17. 2.08 km WNW of Truckee, California · 16610 days ago · 25 km deep · 84 km away
  18. 3.19 km NNW of Truckee, California · 16608 days ago · 9 km deep · 89 km away
  19. 2.110 km NW of Truckee, California · 16608 days ago · 12 km deep · 89 km away
  20. 2.48 km NW of Truckee, California · 16603 days ago · 13 km deep · 87 km away
  21. 1.953km NNE of Yosemite Valley, CA · 16601 days ago · 5 km deep · 66 km away
  22. 2.218 km ENE of Pollock Pines, California · 16599 days ago · 3 km deep · 49 km away
  23. 1.711 km NW of Truckee, California · 16596 days ago · 4 km deep · 89 km away
  24. 2.25 km WSW of Mokelumne Hill, California · 16595 days ago · 5 km deep · 87 km away
  25. 2.013 km SW of Kingvale, California · 16594 days ago · 16 km deep · 85 km away
  26. 2.114km WNW of Hawthorne, NV · 16590 days ago · 4 km deep · 97 km away
  27. 4.210 km WSW of Virginia City, Nevada · 16582 days ago · 10 km deep · 69 km away

Before

  1. 1.95 km SSW of Kingvale, California · 16639 days ago · 7 km deep · 85 km away
  2. 1.810 km SE of Soda Springs, California · 16650 days ago · 32 km deep · 75 km away
  3. 2.323km NW of Yosemite Valley, CA · 16650 days ago · 4 km deep · 86 km away
  4. 2.29 km WSW of Markleeville, California · 16651 days ago · 3 km deep · 1 km away
  5. 2.90 km W of Mesa Vista, California · 16652 days ago · 2 km deep · 18 km away
  6. 2.18 km SSW of Kingvale, California · 16655 days ago · 14 km deep · 84 km away
  7. 2.432km NW of Hawthorne, NV · 16659 days ago · 4 km deep · 91 km away
  8. 2.918km W of Hawthorne, NV · 16659 days ago · 4 km deep · 93 km away
  9. 1.810 km WSW of Alpine Village, California · 16661 days ago · 0 km deep · 9 km away
  10. 2.310 km SSW of Kingvale, California · 16667 days ago · 12 km deep · 81 km away

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Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event nc1061039. Read Tue, Sep 22, 2026, 11:11 AM UTC.