California earthquakes

M1.9 earthquake Central California

A magnitude 1.9 earthquake struck in Central California on Sun, Dec 6, 1987, 6:48 PM PST (02:48 UTC), 6 km (4 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M1.9 14 km N of Morgan Hill, 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
1987-12-07 02:48:52 UTC
Depth
6.1 km (3.8 mi), shallow
Epicenter
36.971° N, 121.376° 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 0.2 km horizontally, 0.4 km in depth
Magnitude uncertainty
±0.19
Depth from
From location
Station coverage gap
38°
Stations used
61

Nearest places

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

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 1.5 and up: 162 in the 60 days after this one and 15 in the 30 days before it.

After

The first 60 of 162.

Before

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Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event nc109597. Read Tue, Sep 22, 2026, 10:27 PM UTC.