California earthquakes

M2.9 earthquake 7 km WSW of Whitehawk, California

A magnitude 2.9 earthquake struck 7 km WSW of Whitehawk, California on Fri, Jan 2, 1981, 3:04 PM PST (23:04 UTC), 8 km (5 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M3.3 6 km NNE of Butte Meadows, 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
2.9 (md), micro
Local time
UTC
1981-01-02 23:04:54 UTC
Depth
8.2 km (5.1 mi), shallow
Epicenter
39.684° N, 120.626° 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 1.1 km horizontally, 4.1 km in depth
Magnitude uncertainty
±0.06
Depth from
From location
Station coverage gap
269°, poorly surrounded by stations
Stations used
18

Nearest places

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

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 1.5 and up: 37 in the 60 days after this one and 17 in the 30 days before it.

After

  1. 2.73 km SW of Whitehawk, California · 16702 days ago · 4 km deep · 4 km away
  2. 2.69 km SSW of Kingvale, California · 16702 days ago · 15 km deep · 50 km away
  3. 1.73 km E of Whitehawk, California · 16701 days ago · 9 km deep · 11 km away
  4. 3.22 km SW of Whitehawk, California · 16701 days ago · 0 km deep · 5 km away
  5. 1.66 km SW of Whitehawk, California · 16701 days ago · 6 km deep · 1 km away
  6. 2.66 km SSW of Meadow Valley, California · 16700 days ago · 17 km deep · 44 km away
  7. 2.11 km S of Whitehawk, California · 16697 days ago · -1 km deep · 7 km away
  8. 2.86 km SSW of Kingvale, California · 16694 days ago · 12 km deep · 48 km away
  9. 1.74 km WSW of Whitehawk, California · 16690 days ago · 7 km deep · 4 km away
  10. 1.65 km SW of Whitehawk, California · 16687 days ago · 8 km deep · 2 km away
  11. 1.78 km SW of Clio, California · 16687 days ago · 14 km deep · 2 km away
  12. 1.56 km S of Kingvale, California · 16684 days ago · 10 km deep · 49 km away
  13. 3.17 km SW of Whitehawk, California · 16677 days ago · 4 km deep · 1 km away
  14. 3.18 km SW of Whitehawk, California · 16677 days ago · 3 km deep · 1 km away
  15. 2.18 km SW of Whitehawk, California · 16677 days ago · 26 km deep · 2 km away
  16. 3.36 km NNE of Butte Meadows, California · 16676 days ago · -1 km deep · 91 km away
  17. 1.64 km SW of Whitehawk, California · 16675 days ago · 3 km deep · 4 km away
  18. 1.57 km SSW of Kingvale, California · 16674 days ago · 6 km deep · 49 km away
  19. 2.34 km SSW of Kingvale, California · 16674 days ago · 18 km deep · 47 km away
  20. 2.310 km SSW of Kingvale, California · 16671 days ago · 12 km deep · 53 km away
  21. 1.63 km S of East Quincy, California · 16667 days ago · 8 km deep · 33 km away
  22. 2.24 km WSW of Whitehawk, California · 16667 days ago · 4 km deep · 3 km away
  23. 2.57 km WSW of Lake Almanor West, California · 16661 days ago · 4 km deep · 80 km away
  24. 2.12 km SW of Forest Ranch, California · 16660 days ago · 20 km deep · 93 km away
  25. 2.18 km SSW of Kingvale, California · 16659 days ago · 14 km deep · 49 km away
  26. 1.95 km WSW of Whitehawk, California · 16658 days ago · 0 km deep · 2 km away
  27. 2.19 km S of East Quincy, California · 16658 days ago · 2 km deep · 30 km away
  28. 2.04 km SE of Palermo, California · 16658 days ago · 6 km deep · 81 km away
  29. 2.02 km SSE of Cromberg, California · 16656 days ago · -1 km deep · 18 km away
  30. 3.07 km SW of Whitehawk, California · 16655 days ago · -1 km deep · 2 km away
  31. 2.04 km SW of Whitehawk, California · 16655 days ago · 0 km deep · 4 km away
  32. 2.47 km N of Little Grass Valley, California · 16655 days ago · 21 km deep · 32 km away
  33. 1.810 km SE of Soda Springs, California · 16654 days ago · 32 km deep · 56 km away
  34. 1.97 km E of Cromberg, California · 16650 days ago · 5 km deep · 19 km away
  35. 2.07 km WSW of Lake Almanor West, California · 16649 days ago · 3 km deep · 80 km away
  36. 2.58 km SW of Clio, California · 16643 days ago · 14 km deep · 1 km away
  37. 1.95 km SSW of Kingvale, California · 16643 days ago · 7 km deep · 48 km away

Before

  1. 2.09 km SW of Whitehawk, California · 16703 days ago · 7 km deep · 2 km away
  2. 3.66 km SW of Whitehawk, California · 16703 days ago · 0 km deep · 2 km away
  3. 1.512 km SSW of Kingvale, California · 16707 days ago · 10 km deep · 53 km away
  4. 3.04 km S of Kingvale, California · 16707 days ago · 8 km deep · 48 km away
  5. 2.83 km NNW of Belden, California · 16711 days ago · 5 km deep · 67 km away
  6. 3.16 km SSW of Kingvale, California · 16712 days ago · 11 km deep · 49 km away
  7. 2.45 km N of Verdi, California · 16712 days ago · 2 km deep · 54 km away
  8. 2.34 km NW of Verdi, California · 16712 days ago · 2 km deep · 52 km away
  9. 2.07 km W of Verdi, California · 16712 days ago · 22 km deep · 48 km away
  10. 1.77 km SW of Kingvale, California · 16713 days ago · 10 km deep · 48 km away
  11. 2.33 km ESE of Palermo, California · 16714 days ago · 5 km deep · 80 km away
  12. 1.86 km SSW of Kingvale, California · 16717 days ago · 13 km deep · 48 km away
  13. 2.97 km SSW of Kingvale, California · 16721 days ago · 16 km deep · 49 km away
  14. 1.58 km SSW of Kingvale, California · 16722 days ago · 12 km deep · 49 km away
  15. 1.78 km SW of Sierraville, California · 16724 days ago · 4 km deep · 24 km away
  16. 3.13 km WSW of Sierraville, California · 16726 days ago · 10 km deep · 22 km away
  17. 2.27 km SSW of Kingvale, California · 16732 days ago · 11 km deep · 50 km away

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Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event nc1058813. Read Sat, Sep 26, 2026, 12:17 PM UTC.