California earthquakes

M2.9 earthquake 141 km W of Ferndale, California

A magnitude 2.9 earthquake struck 141 km W of Ferndale, California on Thu, Dec 31, 1981, 7:05 PM PST (03:05 UTC), 5 km (3 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M2.9 77 km WSW of Ferndale, California. This one was a foreshock.

Ferndale 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
2.9 (md), micro
Local time
UTC
1982-01-01 03:05:31 UTC
Depth
4.7 km (2.9 mi), shallow
Epicenter
40.483° N, 125.935° 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 17.2 km horizontally, 23.0 km in depth
Magnitude uncertainty
±0.08
Depth from
From location
Station coverage gap
315°, 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: 24 in the 60 days after this one and 5 in the 30 days before it.

After

  1. 2.3111 km W of Ferndale, California · 16332 days ago · 5 km deep · 34 km away
  2. 2.977 km WSW of Ferndale, California · 16330 days ago · 8 km deep · 69 km away
  3. 4.8122 km W of Ferndale, California · 16323 days ago · 5 km deep · 23 km away
  4. 3.1127 km W of Ferndale, California · 16323 days ago · 5 km deep · 19 km away
  5. 2.146 km WSW of Ferndale, California · 16322 days ago · 15 km deep · 98 km away
  6. 2.292 km WSW of Ferndale, California · 16320 days ago · 5 km deep · 52 km away
  7. 2.265 km WNW of Ferndale, California · 16316 days ago · 13 km deep · 81 km away
  8. 2.565 km W of Indianola, California · 16309 days ago · 5 km deep · 86 km away
  9. 2.856 km WNW of Indianola, California · 16308 days ago · 15 km deep · 95 km away
  10. 2.963 km WSW of Ferndale, California · 16303 days ago · 58 km deep · 85 km away
  11. 1.983 km WSW of Ferndale, California · 16301 days ago · 4 km deep · 62 km away
  12. 5.285 km W of Trinidad, California · 16299 days ago · 5 km deep · 93 km away
  13. 2.573 km W of Trinidad, California · 16295 days ago · 25 km deep · 98 km away
  14. 3.774 km WNW of Samoa, California · 16295 days ago · 1 km deep · 97 km away
  15. 2.495 km WSW of Ferndale, California · 16294 days ago · 4 km deep · 57 km away
  16. 1.653 km WSW of Ferndale, California · 16291 days ago · 22 km deep · 97 km away
  17. 2.7off the coast of Northern California · 16286 days ago · 10 km deep · 36 km away
  18. 2.755 km WSW of Ferndale, California · 16285 days ago · 39 km deep · 94 km away
  19. 2.147 km W of Ferndale, California · 16284 days ago · 17 km deep · 95 km away
  20. 4.465 km WNW of Indianola, California · 16282 days ago · 12 km deep · 93 km away
  21. 2.4109 km W of Ferndale, California · 16280 days ago · 5 km deep · 33 km away
  22. 2.5126 km W of Ferndale, California · 16280 days ago · 15 km deep · 15 km away
  23. 3.292 km WSW of Ferndale, California · 16280 days ago · 22 km deep · 51 km away
  24. 2.453 km W of Indianola, California · 16278 days ago · 4 km deep · 96 km away

Before

  1. 2.0108 km W of Ferndale, California · 16344 days ago · 4 km deep · 36 km away
  2. 2.066 km WSW of Ferndale, California · 16350 days ago · 5 km deep · 80 km away
  3. 2.348 km W of Ferndale, California · 16353 days ago · 14 km deep · 94 km away
  4. 3.7109 km W of Ferndale, California · 16365 days ago · 5 km deep · 40 km away
  5. 3.872 km W of Ferndale, California · 16365 days ago · 43 km deep · 71 km away

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Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event nc1070861. Read Tue, Sep 22, 2026, 10:26 PM UTC.