California earthquakes

M3.3 earthquake 10km NE of Milpitas, CA

A magnitude 3.3 earthquake struck 10km NE of Milpitas, CA on Tue, Sep 29, 2020, 9:02 AM PDT (16:02 UTC), 5 km (3 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M3.3 4km S of San Juan Bautista, CA. This one was a foreshock.

Milpitas 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
3.3 (Mw, moment), minor
Magnitude from
Northern California Seismic System
Local time
UTC
2020-09-29 16:02:30 UTC
Depth
4.6 km (2.9 mi), shallow
Epicenter
37.494° N, 121.830° W
Felt reports
1,024
Tsunami flag
No
Status
Reviewed by a seismologist

Magnitude estimates

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.ScaleComputed byNotes
3.26Mw, momentNorthern California Seismic SystemPreferred · Final · 4 stations
3.3Mwr, regional momentUSGS National Earthquake Information CenterReviewed · 4 stations

Did you feel it?

1,024 people reported to the USGS what they felt; the strongest reported shaking was IV, light shaking.

Did You Feel It? map: shaking reported by the public
Shaking reported by the public, by area. Map: USGS Did You Feel It?

Fault motion and ground failure

How the rock slipped, from the moment tensor, and the USGS estimate of landslides and liquefaction.

Moment magnitude
3.3 Mw

How well it is located

Reviewed by a seismologist.

Location uncertainty
About 0.1 km horizontally, 0.2 km in depth
Depth from
From location
Station coverage gap
27°
Stations used
126

Nearest places

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

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 1.5 and up: 72 in the 60 days after this one and 51 in the 30 days before it.

After

The first 60 of 72.

Before

Earthquakes todayCalifornia earthquakesLive radar here

Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event nc73464301 (also filed as us6000c2p6). Read Sun, Oct 4, 2026, 5:24 PM UTC.