California earthquakes

M1.9 earthquake 5 km WSW of Whitehawk, California

A magnitude 1.9 earthquake struck 5 km WSW of Whitehawk, California on Sun, Feb 15, 1981, 10:29 PM PST (06:29 UTC), 0 km (0 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M3.8 8 km NNW of Truckee, 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
1.9 (md), micro
Local time
UTC
1981-02-16 06:29:10 UTC
Depth
-0.1 km (-0.1 mi), shallow
Epicenter
39.696° N, 120.607° 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 1.0 km horizontally, 2.7 km in depth
Magnitude uncertainty
±0.11
Depth from
From location
Station coverage gap
264°, poorly surrounded by stations
Stations used
8

Nearest places

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

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 1.5 and up: 40 in the 60 days after this one and 16 in the 30 days before it.

After

  1. 2.19 km S of East Quincy, California · 16662 days ago · 2 km deep · 31 km away
  2. 2.04 km SE of Palermo, California · 16662 days ago · 6 km deep · 83 km away
  3. 2.02 km SSE of Cromberg, California · 16660 days ago · -1 km deep · 17 km away
  4. 3.07 km SW of Whitehawk, California · 16659 days ago · -1 km deep · 3 km away
  5. 2.04 km SW of Whitehawk, California · 16659 days ago · 0 km deep · 2 km away
  6. 2.47 km N of Little Grass Valley, California · 16659 days ago · 21 km deep · 33 km away
  7. 1.810 km SE of Soda Springs, California · 16657 days ago · 32 km deep · 57 km away
  8. 1.97 km E of Cromberg, California · 16654 days ago · 5 km deep · 18 km away
  9. 2.07 km WSW of Lake Almanor West, California · 16653 days ago · 3 km deep · 80 km away
  10. 2.58 km SW of Clio, California · 16647 days ago · 14 km deep · 3 km away
  11. 1.95 km SSW of Kingvale, California · 16647 days ago · 7 km deep · 48 km away
  12. 2.34 km SSW of Prattville, California · 16638 days ago · -1 km deep · 71 km away
  13. 1.9Northern California · 16637 days ago · 17 km deep · 100 km away
  14. 2.7Northern California · 16637 days ago · 7 km deep · 84 km away
  15. 1.89 km SE of Alta, California · 16636 days ago · 0 km deep · 62 km away
  16. 2.49 km SW of Lake Almanor West, California · 16635 days ago · 4 km deep · 78 km away
  17. 1.63 km SSW of Soda Springs, California · 16635 days ago · 15 km deep · 48 km away
  18. 2.34 km SE of Palermo, California · 16634 days ago · 8 km deep · 83 km away
  19. 1.69 km WNW of Plumas Eureka (historical), California · 16624 days ago · 7 km deep · 20 km away
  20. 3.58 km NNW of Truckee, California · 16622 days ago · 9 km deep · 46 km away
  21. 2.211 km NW of Truckee, California · 16622 days ago · 7 km deep · 43 km away
  22. 2.011 km NNW of Truckee, California · 16622 days ago · 11 km deep · 44 km away
  23. 2.011 km N of Truckee, California · 16622 days ago · 7 km deep · 47 km away
  24. 2.29 km NNW of Truckee, California · 16622 days ago · 12 km deep · 47 km away
  25. 2.39 km NNW of Truckee, California · 16622 days ago · 14 km deep · 46 km away
  26. 3.88 km NNW of Truckee, California · 16622 days ago · 5 km deep · 47 km away
  27. 2.39 km NNW of Truckee, California · 16622 days ago · 11 km deep · 45 km away
  28. 1.710 km NNW of Truckee, California · 16622 days ago · 13 km deep · 44 km away
  29. 2.99 km NW of Truckee, California · 16622 days ago · 14 km deep · 45 km away
  30. 1.84 km NW of Tobin, California · 16620 days ago · 3 km deep · 70 km away
  31. 2.08 km WNW of Truckee, California · 16618 days ago · 25 km deep · 48 km away
  32. 3.19 km NNW of Truckee, California · 16616 days ago · 9 km deep · 46 km away
  33. 2.110 km NW of Truckee, California · 16615 days ago · 12 km deep · 44 km away
  34. 3.35 km NE of Canyondam, California · 16611 days ago · 15 km deep · 67 km away
  35. 2.48 km NW of Truckee, California · 16610 days ago · 13 km deep · 46 km away
  36. 2.14 km SE of Palermo, California · 16610 days ago · 6 km deep · 83 km away
  37. 1.85 km SE of Palermo, California · 16609 days ago · 6 km deep · 84 km away
  38. 2.218 km ENE of Pollock Pines, California · 16606 days ago · 3 km deep · 97 km away
  39. 1.711 km NW of Truckee, California · 16604 days ago · 4 km deep · 44 km away
  40. 2.013 km SW of Kingvale, California · 16602 days ago · 16 km deep · 52 km away

Before

  1. 2.18 km SSW of Kingvale, California · 16663 days ago · 14 km deep · 50 km away
  2. 2.12 km SW of Forest Ranch, California · 16664 days ago · 20 km deep · 95 km away
  3. 2.57 km WSW of Lake Almanor West, California · 16664 days ago · 4 km deep · 80 km away
  4. 2.24 km WSW of Whitehawk, California · 16671 days ago · 4 km deep · 1 km away
  5. 1.63 km S of East Quincy, California · 16671 days ago · 8 km deep · 33 km away
  6. 2.310 km SSW of Kingvale, California · 16675 days ago · 12 km deep · 53 km away
  7. 2.34 km SSW of Kingvale, California · 16677 days ago · 18 km deep · 48 km away
  8. 1.57 km SSW of Kingvale, California · 16678 days ago · 6 km deep · 50 km away
  9. 1.64 km SW of Whitehawk, California · 16678 days ago · 3 km deep · 2 km away
  10. 3.36 km NNE of Butte Meadows, California · 16680 days ago · -1 km deep · 92 km away
  11. 2.18 km SW of Whitehawk, California · 16680 days ago · 26 km deep · 4 km away
  12. 3.18 km SW of Whitehawk, California · 16681 days ago · 3 km deep · 3 km away
  13. 3.17 km SW of Whitehawk, California · 16681 days ago · 4 km deep · 2 km away
  14. 1.56 km S of Kingvale, California · 16688 days ago · 10 km deep · 50 km away
  15. 1.78 km SW of Clio, California · 16691 days ago · 14 km deep · 4 km away
  16. 1.65 km SW of Whitehawk, California · 16691 days ago · 8 km deep · 1 km away

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Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event nc1060429. Read Wed, Sep 30, 2026, 4:33 AM UTC.