California earthquakes

M1.8 earthquake 25 km ENE of Potter Valley, California

A magnitude 1.8 earthquake struck 25 km ENE of Potter Valley, California on Thu, Mar 20, 1986, 3:19 AM PST (11:19 UTC), 1 km (1 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M1.9 21 km NNW of Covelo, California. This one was a foreshock.

Potter Valley forecast More in California

Map

Where this earthquake was located, with the others nearby. Select one for its page.

Open the live map with earthquakes

The earthquake

Magnitude: 1.8 (md), micro
Local time: Thu, Mar 20, 1986, 3:19 AM PST
UTC: 1986-03-20 11:19:27 UTC
Depth: 1.1 km (0.7 mi), shallow
Epicenter: 39.395° N, 122.837° W
Region: California
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 0.6 km horizontally, 5.6 km in depth
Magnitude uncertainty: ±0.14
Depth from: From location
Station coverage gap: 183°, poorly surrounded by stations
Stations used: 5

Nearest places

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

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 1.5 and up: 175 in the 60 days after this one and 0 in the 30 days before it.

After

The first 60 of 175.

Earthquakes today California earthquakes Live radar here

Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event nc1136708. Read Thu, Sep 24, 2026, 5:13 AM UTC.