M2.1 earthquake 7 km NNE of Benton, California

A magnitude 2.1 earthquake struck 7 km NNE of Benton, California on Mon, Jan 28, 2002, 7:09 AM PST (15:09 UTC), 8 km (5 mi) below the surface.

Automatic solution: the magnitude and location may still be revised.

A larger quake followed: M3.7 13 km W of Aspen Springs, California. This one was a foreshock.

Map

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

Different scales measure different things and differ by a few tenths. The USGS marks one as preferred, and it is the one this page uses.

Mag.	Scale	Computed by	Notes
2.1	Md, duration	Northern California Seismic System	Preferred · Preliminary · ±0.17 · 18 stations
2.3	ML, local (Richter)	Nevada Seismological Laboratory	Reviewed

No one has reported feeling this quake to the USGS.

An automatic solution; a seismologist may revise it.

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

Within 100 km, magnitude 1.5 and up: 120 in the 60 days after this one and 40 in the 30 days before it.

The first 60 of 120.

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event nc30505309 (also filed as nn00043880). Read Mon, Oct 5, 2026, 1:09 PM UTC.