California earthquakes

M3.0 earthquake 161 km W of Ferndale, California

A magnitude 3.0 earthquake struck 161 km W of Ferndale, California on Tue, Oct 9, 1990, 8:17 AM PDT (15:17 UTC), 5 km (3 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M4.5 95 km W 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
3.0 (Md, duration), minor
Magnitude from
Northern California Seismic System
Local time
UTC
1990-10-09 15:17:17 UTC
Depth
4.7 km (2.9 mi), shallow
Epicenter
40.701° N, 126.167° 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 9.0 km horizontally, 9.7 km in depth
Magnitude uncertainty
±0.03
Depth from
From location
Station coverage gap
308°, poorly surrounded by stations
Stations used
7

Nearest places

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

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 1.5 and up: 6 in the 60 days after this one and 9 in the 30 days before it.

After

  1. 3.7126 km W of Trinidad, California · 13144 days ago · 2 km deep · 67 km away
  2. 2.474 km WNW of Ferndale, California · 13132 days ago · 5 km deep · 89 km away
  3. 3.082 km W of Ferndale, California · 13127 days ago · 1 km deep · 85 km away
  4. 3.1124 km W of Ferndale, California · 13123 days ago · 6 km deep · 48 km away
  5. 3.283 km W of Trinidad, California · 13119 days ago · 2 km deep · 95 km away
  6. 4.595 km W of Ferndale, California · 13085 days ago · 4 km deep · 66 km away

Before

  1. 2.477 km W of Ferndale, California · 13148 days ago · 5 km deep · 84 km away
  2. 4.4off the coast of Northern California · 13151 days ago · 4 km deep · 89 km away
  3. 4.4230 km W of Ferndale, California · 13151 days ago · 6 km deep · 72 km away
  4. 2.9141 km W of Ferndale, California · 13156 days ago · 5 km deep · 25 km away
  5. 2.385 km WSW of Ferndale, California · 13158 days ago · 4 km deep · 85 km away
  6. 3.798 km W of Ferndale, California · 13158 days ago · 9 km deep · 68 km away
  7. 4.7105 km W of Ferndale, California · 13158 days ago · 6 km deep · 65 km away
  8. 3.4141 km W of Ferndale, California · 13166 days ago · 5 km deep · 27 km away
  9. 2.685 km W of Ferndale, California · 13174 days ago · 5 km deep · 79 km away

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Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event nc200556. Read Mon, Oct 5, 2026, 2:40 AM UTC.