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United States · California

M2.8 Earthquake near Kern County, California (United States)

UTC time: 2026-09-23 20:44:36 UTC Local time: —

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About this earthquake

A magnitude M2.8 earthquake was recorded near Kern County, California (United States) on September 23, 2026 at 20:44 UTC. With a focal depth of about 6 km, this was a shallow earthquake, whose shaking is usually felt more strongly at the surface. Events of this size typically go unnoticed.

The event was recorded by USGS. United States: over the past 24 hours, QuakeMap24 logged 197 earthquakes, the strongest at M3.5.

Details

ID
b65b98a64ff58523248fee2480dfcf1e71ddf8e6
Magnitude
M2.8
Depth
5.6 km
UTC time
2026-09-23 20:44:36 UTC
Local time
—
Country
United States
State
California
City
Kern County
County
Kern County
Source
usgs
Coordinates
35.31150, -117.80483
Temperature
30.8°C

Depth profile

Depth profile Depth: 5.6 km (Shallow) Surface Shallow Intermediate Deep 0 km 70 km 300 km 700 km 5.6 km
Shallow
5.6 km
5.6 km — shallower than the regional average (15.2 km)
Regional average: 15.2 km
Why depth matters

Shallow quakes release energy near the surface — shaking is felt more strongly and damage potential is higher.

Depth classes per USGS

Volcanoes nearby

  • Ubehebe Craters
    Distance: 193 km ·Maar(s) ·Elevation: 752 m ·Last eruption: -150 ·United States
  • Mammoth Mountain
    Distance: 280 km ·Lava dome(s) ·Elevation: 3'369 m ·Last eruption: 1260 ·United States
  • Mono-Inyo Craters
    Distance: 298 km ·Lava dome(s) ·Elevation: 2'796 m ·Last eruption: 1380 ·United States
  • Salton Buttes
    Distance: 309 km ·Lava dome(s) ·Elevation: -40 m ·Last eruption: 210 ·United States
  • Mono Lake Volcanic Field
    Distance: 318 km ·Volcanic field ·Elevation: 2'121 m ·Last eruption: 1790 ·United States
  • Uinkaret Field
    Distance: 438 km ·Volcanic field ·Elevation: 1'555 m ·Last eruption: 1100 ·United States

California

Context for this earthquake

23 Sep 2025 – 23 Sep 2026 · M ≥ 2.0 · 2,418 Catalogue entries

Of 2,417 other entries for this area and period, 382 have a higher stored magnitude. Different magnitude types and reports not yet merged limit the comparison.

Open seismic profile

Historic earthquake map · United States

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