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United States · California

M1.5 Earthquake near Pala Mesa, California (United States)

UTC time: 2026-09-16 19:02:14 UTC Local time: —

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About this earthquake

A magnitude M1.5 earthquake was recorded near Pala Mesa, California (United States) on September 16, 2026 at 19:02 UTC. With a focal depth of about 4 km, this was a shallow earthquake, whose shaking is usually felt more strongly at the surface. Events of this size typically go unnoticed.

The data is provided by USGS and cross-checked across seismological networks. United States: 181 earthquakes were recorded in the past 24 hours, the strongest reaching M5.2.

Details

ID
cf5e7317e101d54d2d6728ee159ea22892225ef5
Magnitude
M1.5
Depth
4.1 km
UTC time
2026-09-16 19:02:14 UTC
Local time
—
Country
United States
State
California
City
Pala Mesa
County
San Diego County
Source
usgs
Coordinates
33.32883, -117.15083
Temperature
25.1°C

Depth profile

Depth profile Depth: 4.1 km (Shallow) Surface Shallow Intermediate Deep 0 km 70 km 300 km 700 km 4.1 km
Shallow
4.1 km
4.1 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

  • Salton Buttes
    Distance: 143 km ·Lava dome(s) ·Elevation: -40 m ·Last eruption: 210 ·United States
  • Pinacate
    Distance: 379 km ·Volcanic field ·Elevation: 1'183 m ·Mexico
  • Ubehebe Craters
    Distance: 411 km ·Maar(s) ·Elevation: 752 m ·Last eruption: -150 ·United States
  • San Luis, Isla
    Distance: 455 km ·Tuff cone ·Elevation: 183 m ·Last eruption: -1141 ·Mexico
  • Uinkaret Field
    Distance: 500 km ·Volcanic field ·Elevation: 1'555 m ·Last eruption: 1100 ·United States

Radius · 50 km

Nearby infrastructure

Up to 3 nearest sites per category

Airports

  • McClellan-Palomar AirportUnited States · CLD · KCRQ
    25.3 kmStraight-line distance

Source: OurAirports · Dataset date: 2026-09-16

Nuclear power plants

  • San Onofre nuclear power plantUnited StatesPermanently shut downReactor units at site: 3
    37.7 kmStraight-line distance

Source: Global Energy Monitor · Global Nuclear Power Tracker · Dataset date: 2026-08

This selection shows geographic proximity, not a hazard zone or confirmed impacts. Distances use recorded site coordinates. Sources & data dates

California

Context for this earthquake

16 Sep 2025 – 16 Sep 2026 · M ≥ 2.0 · 2,412 Catalogue entries

Sufficiently reliable matching data are not currently available for a direct comparison. The area profile shows the available records and their limitations.

Open seismic profile

Historic earthquake map · United States

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Explore recent and long-term earthquake activity in this country. Use filters to narrow down by magnitude, depth, and date range.

Country statistics · United States

Country overview
View earthquake KPIs, strongest and latest events, and averages for this country.

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