California earthquakes

M1.5 earthquake 12 km ESE of Gilroy, California

A magnitude 1.5 earthquake struck 12 km ESE of Gilroy, California on Wed, Dec 31, 1986, 4:46 AM PST (12:46 UTC), 5 km (3 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M1.6 18 km NE of East Foothills, California. This one was a foreshock.

Gilroy 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
1.5 (md), micro
Local time
UTC
1986-12-31 12:46:48 UTC
Depth
4.6 km (2.9 mi), shallow
Epicenter
36.974° N, 121.428° 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 0.1 km horizontally, 0.3 km in depth
Magnitude uncertainty
±0.18
Depth from
From location
Station coverage gap
63°
Stations used
47

Nearest places

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

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 1.5 and up: 180 in the 60 days after this one and 0 in the 30 days before it.

After

  1. 1.618 km NE of East Foothills, California · 14494 days ago · 6 km deep · 63 km away
  2. 1.830 km ENE of San Lucas, California · 14494 days ago · 9 km deep · 100 km away
  3. 2.124 km NE of Greenfield, California · 14493 days ago · 6 km deep · 65 km away
  4. 2.1Central California · 14493 days ago · 4 km deep · 44 km away
  5. 2.121 km SSE of Tres Pinos, California · 14493 days ago · 4 km deep · 44 km away
  6. 1.615 km N of Morgan Hill, California · 14493 days ago · 6 km deep · 39 km away
  7. 1.824 km NE of Greenfield, California · 14492 days ago · 8 km deep · 66 km away
  8. 1.610 km ESE of Blackhawk, California · 14491 days ago · 9 km deep · 96 km away
  9. 1.729 km ENE of Soledad, California · 14491 days ago · 6 km deep · 57 km away
  10. 2.829 km ENE of Soledad, California · 14491 days ago · 7 km deep · 56 km away
  11. 4.29 km ENE of Morgan Hill, California · 14491 days ago · 7 km deep · 24 km away
  12. 1.69 km NE of San Martin, California · 14491 days ago · 6 km deep · 23 km away
  13. 1.910 km NNW of Hollister, California · 14491 days ago · 2 km deep · 3 km away
  14. 1.614 km SE of Livermore, California · 14490 days ago · 4 km deep · 71 km away
  15. 2.321 km NE of Soledad, California · 14490 days ago · 5 km deep · 49 km away
  16. 1.621 km NE of Soledad, California · 14490 days ago · 5 km deep · 49 km away
  17. 2.521 km NE of Soledad, California · 14490 days ago · 5 km deep · 50 km away
  18. 1.8Central California · 14490 days ago · 13 km deep · 76 km away
  19. 2.125 km ENE of Greenfield, California · 14490 days ago · 6 km deep · 74 km away
  20. 1.78 km NE of Interlaken, California · 14489 days ago · 4 km deep · 22 km away
  21. 1.77 km NE of Tres Pinos, California · 14489 days ago · 4 km deep · 20 km away
  22. 1.815 km E of Seven Trees, California · 14488 days ago · 6 km deep · 40 km away
  23. 2.031 km SW of Three Rocks, California · 14487 days ago · 10 km deep · 99 km away
  24. 1.91 km W of Hollister, California · 14486 days ago · 4 km deep · 14 km away
  25. 1.78 km ENE of Milpitas, California · 14486 days ago · 7 km deep · 65 km away
  26. 1.54 km SSW of Loyola, California · 14486 days ago · 6 km deep · 72 km away
  27. 1.812 km S of Los Banos, California · 14486 days ago · 2 km deep · 54 km away
  28. 1.821 km NE of Soledad, California · 14486 days ago · 4 km deep · 53 km away
  29. 1.713 km ENE of East Foothills, California · 14486 days ago · 7 km deep · 56 km away
  30. 2.110 km NNE of East Foothills, California · 14485 days ago · 7 km deep · 62 km away
  31. 2.514 km E of Seven Trees, California · 14484 days ago · 3 km deep · 41 km away
  32. 1.815 km N of Morgan Hill, California · 14484 days ago · 2 km deep · 38 km away
  33. 2.115 km N of Morgan Hill, California · 14484 days ago · 2 km deep · 38 km away
  34. 2.26 km SSW of Gilroy, California · 14483 days ago · 4 km deep · 15 km away
  35. 2.422 km NE of Soledad, California · 14483 days ago · 3 km deep · 48 km away
  36. 1.916 km SSE of Livermore, California · 14483 days ago · 1 km deep · 68 km away
  37. 1.816 km SSE of Livermore, California · 14483 days ago · 1 km deep · 68 km away
  38. 1.727 km ENE of Soledad, California · 14483 days ago · 8 km deep · 57 km away
  39. 1.515 km ENE of Greenfield, California · 14482 days ago · 4 km deep · 75 km away
  40. 1.621 km NE of Soledad, California · 14482 days ago · 7 km deep · 52 km away
  41. 2.024 km ENE of Soledad, California · 14482 days ago · 2 km deep · 62 km away
  42. 1.97 km NE of Big Sur, California · 14482 days ago · 16 km deep · 78 km away
  43. 1.617 km SSE of Livermore, California · 14481 days ago · 0 km deep · 67 km away
  44. 1.913 km S of Tres Pinos, California · 14481 days ago · 4 km deep · 35 km away
  45. 2.313 km S of Tres Pinos, California · 14481 days ago · 4 km deep · 35 km away
  46. 1.915 km SSE of Livermore, California · 14481 days ago · 4 km deep · 69 km away
  47. 1.624 km NE of Greenfield, California · 14480 days ago · 6 km deep · 68 km away
  48. 2.212 km ESE of East Foothills, California · 14480 days ago · 7 km deep · 46 km away
  49. 2.46 km ENE of Hollister, California · 14480 days ago · 6 km deep · 13 km away
  50. 1.96 km ENE of Hollister, California · 14480 days ago · 6 km deep · 13 km away
  51. 2.423 km NE of King City, California · 14479 days ago · 5 km deep · 77 km away
  52. 3.315 km WSW of Soledad, California · 14479 days ago · 8 km deep · 69 km away
  53. 1.916 km WSW of Soledad, California · 14479 days ago · 7 km deep · 69 km away
  54. 1.622 km NE of Soledad, California · 14479 days ago · 8 km deep · 54 km away
  55. 1.56 km ENE of Hollister, California · 14479 days ago · 6 km deep · 13 km away
  56. 2.76 km ENE of Hollister, California · 14479 days ago · 6 km deep · 13 km away
  57. 2.51 km NE of Aromas, California · 14478 days ago · 5 km deep · 20 km away
  58. 1.86 km ENE of Hollister, California · 14478 days ago · 6 km deep · 13 km away
  59. 2.223 km ENE of San Lucas, California · 14478 days ago · 7 km deep · 98 km away
  60. 2.026km ENE of King City, CA · 14478 days ago · 5 km deep · 92 km away

The first 60 of 180.

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Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event nc91463. Read Tue, Sep 22, 2026, 8:59 AM UTC.