California earthquakes

M2.7 earthquake 31km W of Petrolia, CA

A magnitude 2.7 earthquake struck 31km W of Petrolia, CA on Tue, Dec 28, 2021, 3:16 PM PST (23:16 UTC), 20 km (12 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M4.6 50km W of Petrolia, CA. 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
2.7 (Md, duration), micro
Magnitude from
Northern California Seismic System
Local time
UTC
2021-12-28 23:16:29 UTC
Depth
19.8 km (12.3 mi), shallow
Epicenter
40.292° N, 124.649° W
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
2.72Md, durationNorthern California Seismic SystemPreferred · Final · ±0.127 · 41 stations
2.6ML, local (Richter)USGS National Earthquake Information CenterReviewed · ±0.062 · 34 stations

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 0.5 km horizontally, 0.4 km in depth
Magnitude uncertainty
±0.13
Depth from
From location
Station coverage gap
236°, poorly surrounded by stations
Stations used
40

Nearest places

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

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 1.5 and up: 106 in the 60 days after this one and 183 in the 30 days before it.

After

The first 60 of 106.

Before

Earthquakes todayCalifornia earthquakesLive radar here

Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event nc73668991 (also filed as us6000gfyv). Read Sun, Oct 4, 2026, 4:59 PM UTC.