California earthquakes

M3.0 earthquake 6km NNW of Pinnacles, CA

A magnitude 3.0 earthquake struck 6km NNW of Pinnacles, CA on Fri, Feb 12, 2021, 9:07 AM PST (17:07 UTC), 8 km (5 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M3.8 9km ENE of Gilroy, 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
3.0 (ML, local (Richter)), micro
Magnitude from
Northern California Seismic System
Local time
UTC
2021-02-12 17:07:13 UTC
Depth
7.9 km (4.9 mi), shallow
Epicenter
36.575° N, 121.173° W
Felt reports
7
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
2.98ML, local (Richter)Northern California Seismic SystemPreferred · Final · ±0.153 · 49 stations
2.8ML, local (Richter)USGS National Earthquake Information CenterReviewed · ±0.035 · 107 stations

Did you feel it?

7 people reported to the USGS what they felt; the strongest reported shaking was II, weak shaking.

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

How well it is located

Reviewed by a seismologist.

Location uncertainty
About 0.2 km horizontally, 0.4 km in depth
Magnitude uncertainty
±0.15
Depth from
From location
Station coverage gap
53°
Stations used
51

Nearest places

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

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 1.5 and up: 158 in the 60 days after this one and 63 in the 30 days before it.

After

The first 60 of 158.

Before

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Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event nc73522106 (also filed as us6000dh49). Read Sat, Oct 3, 2026, 6:06 PM UTC.