California earthquakes

M1.6 earthquake Northern California

A magnitude 1.6 earthquake struck in Northern California on Fri, Nov 20, 1981, 5:24 AM PST (13:24 UTC), 8 km (5 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M2.7 7 km WNW of Paradise, California. This one was a foreshock.

Shingletown 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
1981-11-20 13:24:14 UTC
Depth
7.7 km (4.8 mi), shallow
Epicenter
40.582° N, 121.528° 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 4.1 km horizontally, 4.7 km in depth
Magnitude uncertainty
±0.08
Depth from
From location
Station coverage gap
299°, poorly surrounded by stations
Stations used
4

Nearest places

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

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 1.5 and up: 25 in the 60 days after this one and 10 in the 30 days before it.

After

  1. 2.5Northern California · 16372 days ago · 6 km deep · 75 km away
  2. 1.713 km NNW of Big Bend, California · 16370 days ago · 3 km deep · 72 km away
  3. 1.815 km WSW of Chester, California · 16369 days ago · 3 km deep · 37 km away
  4. 1.62 km E of Shingletown, California · 16368 days ago · 3 km deep · 29 km away
  5. 1.94 km NW of Lake Almanor West, California · 16368 days ago · 26 km deep · 42 km away
  6. 1.85 km WNW of Manton, California · 16365 days ago · 3 km deep · 37 km away
  7. 2.77 km WNW of Paradise, California · 16362 days ago · 5 km deep · 91 km away
  8. 1.64 km W of McCloud, California · 16358 days ago · 9 km deep · 93 km away
  9. 2.48 km WNW of Belden, California · 16353 days ago · 4 km deep · 63 km away
  10. 1.64 km N of Shingletown, California · 16351 days ago · 3 km deep · 31 km away
  11. 2.420 km WSW of Old Station, CA · 16351 days ago · 7 km deep · 10 km away
  12. 2.110 km SW of Lake Almanor West, California · 16349 days ago · 4 km deep · 52 km away
  13. 2.20 km WNW of Millville, California · 16347 days ago · 19 km deep · 55 km away
  14. 1.814 km NNE of Mineral, California · 16345 days ago · 2 km deep · 12 km away
  15. 1.519 km SE of Round Mountain, California · 16342 days ago · 29 km deep · 23 km away
  16. 1.914 km NNE of Mineral, California · 16341 days ago · 3 km deep · 13 km away
  17. 2.73 km WNW of Greenville, California · 16340 days ago · 2 km deep · 67 km away
  18. 1.621 km WSW of Old Station, California · 16334 days ago · 7 km deep · 10 km away
  19. 1.711 km WSW of Chester, California · 16331 days ago · 8 km deep · 40 km away
  20. 1.815 km ESE of Mineral, California · 16330 days ago · 7 km deep · 31 km away
  21. 1.915 km W of Lake Almanor West, California · 16330 days ago · 10 km deep · 42 km away
  22. 1.612 km WSW of Chester, CA · 16327 days ago · 0 km deep · 38 km away
  23. 1.614 km W of Chester, California · 16326 days ago · 6 km deep · 33 km away
  24. 2.40 km SSE of Bella Vista, California · 16325 days ago · 4 km deep · 60 km away
  25. 1.819 km SW of Old Station, California · 16323 days ago · 8 km deep · 7 km away

Before

  1. 2.015 km SSW of Old Station, California · 16383 days ago · 5 km deep · 3 km away
  2. 2.329 km SE of Nubieber, California · 16383 days ago · 5 km deep · 56 km away
  3. 1.86 km NNW of Bucks Lake, California · 16388 days ago · 11 km deep · 78 km away
  4. 1.912 km NNW of Shingletown, California · 16394 days ago · 3 km deep · 34 km away
  5. 2.615 km ENE of Shingletown, California · 16395 days ago · 9 km deep · 17 km away
  6. 1.73 km NW of Chester, California · 16397 days ago · 2 km deep · 36 km away
  7. 1.55 km NW of Chester, California · 16397 days ago · 2 km deep · 35 km away
  8. 2.79 km NE of Gerber, California · 16398 days ago · 24 km deep · 69 km away
  9. 1.913 km N of Chester, California · 16400 days ago · 2 km deep · 30 km away
  10. 3.110 km N of Chico, California · 16409 days ago · 22 km deep · 88 km away

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Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event nc1069605. Read Mon, Sep 28, 2026, 1:49 AM UTC.