California earthquakes

M1.7 earthquake 3 km E of Whitehawk, California

A magnitude 1.7 earthquake struck 3 km E of Whitehawk, California on Sat, Jan 3, 1981, 6:14 PM PST (02:14 UTC), 9 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
1.7 (ma), micro
Local time
UTC
1981-01-04 02:14:46 UTC
Depth
8.7 km (5.4 mi), shallow
Epicenter
39.726° N, 120.515° 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, 1.1 km in depth
Magnitude uncertainty
±0.13
Depth from
From location
Station coverage gap
301°, poorly surrounded by stations
Stations used
11

Nearest places

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

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 1.5 and up: 33 in the 60 days after this one and 19 in the 30 days before it.

After

  1. 3.22 km SW of Whitehawk, California · 16705 days ago · 0 km deep · 6 km away
  2. 1.66 km SW of Whitehawk, California · 16705 days ago · 6 km deep · 9 km away
  3. 2.66 km SSW of Meadow Valley, California · 16704 days ago · 17 km deep · 51 km away
  4. 2.11 km S of Whitehawk, California · 16701 days ago · -1 km deep · 4 km away
  5. 2.86 km SSW of Kingvale, California · 16698 days ago · 12 km deep · 51 km away
  6. 1.74 km WSW of Whitehawk, California · 16694 days ago · 7 km deep · 7 km away
  7. 1.65 km SW of Whitehawk, California · 16690 days ago · 8 km deep · 8 km away
  8. 1.78 km SW of Clio, California · 16690 days ago · 14 km deep · 12 km away
  9. 1.56 km S of Kingvale, California · 16688 days ago · 10 km deep · 51 km away
  10. 3.17 km SW of Whitehawk, California · 16681 days ago · 4 km deep · 10 km away
  11. 3.18 km SW of Whitehawk, California · 16681 days ago · 3 km deep · 11 km away
  12. 2.18 km SW of Whitehawk, California · 16680 days ago · 26 km deep · 11 km away
  13. 3.36 km NNE of Butte Meadows, California · 16680 days ago · -1 km deep · 97 km away
  14. 1.64 km SW of Whitehawk, California · 16678 days ago · 3 km deep · 7 km away
  15. 1.57 km SSW of Kingvale, California · 16678 days ago · 6 km deep · 52 km away
  16. 2.34 km SSW of Kingvale, California · 16677 days ago · 18 km deep · 50 km away
  17. 2.310 km SSW of Kingvale, California · 16675 days ago · 12 km deep · 56 km away
  18. 1.63 km S of East Quincy, California · 16671 days ago · 8 km deep · 38 km away
  19. 2.24 km WSW of Whitehawk, California · 16671 days ago · 4 km deep · 8 km away
  20. 2.57 km WSW of Lake Almanor West, California · 16664 days ago · 4 km deep · 84 km away
  21. 2.18 km SSW of Kingvale, California · 16663 days ago · 14 km deep · 52 km away
  22. 1.95 km WSW of Whitehawk, California · 16662 days ago · 0 km deep · 9 km away
  23. 2.19 km S of East Quincy, California · 16662 days ago · 2 km deep · 36 km away
  24. 2.04 km SE of Palermo, California · 16662 days ago · 6 km deep · 92 km away
  25. 2.02 km SSE of Cromberg, California · 16660 days ago · -1 km deep · 18 km away
  26. 3.07 km SW of Whitehawk, California · 16659 days ago · -1 km deep · 10 km away
  27. 2.04 km SW of Whitehawk, California · 16659 days ago · 0 km deep · 7 km away
  28. 2.47 km N of Little Grass Valley, California · 16658 days ago · 21 km deep · 40 km away
  29. 1.810 km SE of Soda Springs, California · 16657 days ago · 32 km deep · 57 km away
  30. 1.97 km E of Cromberg, California · 16654 days ago · 5 km deep · 16 km away
  31. 2.07 km WSW of Lake Almanor West, California · 16653 days ago · 3 km deep · 84 km away
  32. 2.58 km SW of Clio, California · 16647 days ago · 14 km deep · 12 km away
  33. 1.95 km SSW of Kingvale, California · 16647 days ago · 7 km deep · 50 km away

Before

  1. 2.69 km SSW of Kingvale, California · 16706 days ago · 15 km deep · 54 km away
  2. 2.73 km SW of Whitehawk, California · 16706 days ago · 4 km deep · 6 km away
  3. 2.97 km WSW of Whitehawk, California · 16706 days ago · 8 km deep · 11 km away
  4. 2.09 km SW of Whitehawk, California · 16706 days ago · 7 km deep · 12 km away
  5. 3.66 km SW of Whitehawk, California · 16706 days ago · 0 km deep · 9 km away
  6. 1.512 km SSW of Kingvale, California · 16711 days ago · 10 km deep · 57 km away
  7. 3.04 km S of Kingvale, California · 16711 days ago · 8 km deep · 50 km away
  8. 2.83 km NNW of Belden, California · 16715 days ago · 5 km deep · 72 km away
  9. 3.16 km SSW of Kingvale, California · 16716 days ago · 11 km deep · 52 km away
  10. 2.45 km N of Verdi, California · 16716 days ago · 2 km deep · 46 km away
  11. 2.34 km NW of Verdi, California · 16716 days ago · 2 km deep · 45 km away
  12. 2.07 km W of Verdi, California · 16716 days ago · 22 km deep · 42 km away
  13. 1.77 km SW of Kingvale, California · 16716 days ago · 10 km deep · 51 km away
  14. 2.33 km ESE of Palermo, California · 16718 days ago · 5 km deep · 91 km away
  15. 1.86 km SSW of Kingvale, California · 16721 days ago · 13 km deep · 51 km away
  16. 2.97 km SSW of Kingvale, California · 16725 days ago · 16 km deep · 52 km away
  17. 1.58 km SSW of Kingvale, California · 16726 days ago · 12 km deep · 53 km away
  18. 1.78 km SW of Sierraville, California · 16728 days ago · 4 km deep · 23 km away
  19. 3.13 km WSW of Sierraville, California · 16730 days ago · 10 km deep · 19 km away

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Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event nc1058847. Read Wed, Sep 30, 2026, 3:35 AM UTC.