The map shows quakes of M1.5 and up from the last 90 days, the 8 biggest on record, and always the very latest quake — even if it was smaller than M1.5. The list below can include smaller ones the map leaves out. Tap any dot for details.
In the last 30 days, 3 earthquakes of M1.5 or bigger were recorded within 100 km of Alta Sierra, the biggest of them M2.4. Over the past year, M3.0+ quakes near Alta Sierra came at 1.5× the usual pace — busier than normal for this area. The biggest quake on record near Alta Sierra — records go back to 1980 — was the M5.2 of Aug 10, 2001, 20:19 UTC: 3 km N of Blairsden, California.
How we figure this: 5 quakes of M3.0 or bigger within 100 km in the last 12 months (Nov 04, 2025 – Nov 04, 2026), compared with an average of 3.3 a year across the full calendar years 2016–2025, counted the same way. This compares how often quakes happened in two past periods. It is not a forecast, and it does not mean a big earthquake is on its way — nobody can predict earthquakes.
Does a busier spell mean a bigger earthquake is coming?
Short answer: nobody can tell — and a busier spell by itself is not a warning sign. Bunches of small quakes are common around Alta Sierra, and most settle down on their own. Small quakes also do not “let off steam” that would prevent a big one: a single M7 releases roughly as much energy as 32,000 M4 quakes added together. Earthquakes cannot be predicted. What can be measured is the long-term pattern — the biggest quakes on record near Alta Sierra are listed further down this page.
Latest earthquakes near Alta Sierra
| Mag | Location | Local time | Depth | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| M2.1 | 9 km SE of Dollar Point, CA | Nov 02, 2026, 04:13 AM | 5 km | 89 km E |
| M1.4 | 3 km SW of Tahoe Vista, CA | Oct 12, 2026, 06:40 PM | 4 km | 85 km E |
| M1.8 | 3 km NE of Dollar Point, CA | Oct 12, 2026, 10:22 AM | 5 km | 84 km E |
| M2.4 | 9 km N of Greenhorn, CA | Oct 09, 2026, 06:46 PM | 3 km | 97 km NNE |
| M1.2 | 4 km NNE of Dollar Point, CA | Oct 07, 2026, 10:13 AM | 5 km | 85 km E |
| M2.9 | 9 km WSW of South Lake Tahoe, CA | Oct 02, 2026, 11:58 PM | 11 km | 89 km ESE |
| M2.2 | 15 km S of Hamilton City, CA | Oct 02, 2026, 12:00 PM | 24 km | 99 km WNW |
| M3.3 | 9 km WSW of South Lake Tahoe, CA | Oct 02, 2026, 03:00 AM | 11 km | 88 km ESE |
| M2.2 | 15 km S of Hamilton City, CA | Sep 30, 2026, 12:47 PM | 22 km | 98 km WNW |
| M2.1 | 3 km ENE of Keddie, CA | Sep 15, 2026, 08:06 PM | 13 km | 98 km N |
Earthquakes per year near Alta Sierra (M3.0 and up, within 100 km)
M3.0–3.9 M4.0+
Each bar is one year; taller means more quakes (M3.0 and up). The dark red part is the bigger ones (M4.0+), counted inside the number above each bar — not added on top. These may be felt, depending on how far away and how deep they are. 2026 is not a full year yet — it only counts up to today. Source: USGS Earthquake Catalog.
What the last year looked like near Alta Sierra
Every quake of M1.5 or bigger within 100 km over the last year — 84 in total. A quake of exactly M2.0 counts in the M2.0–3.0 group.
The 8 biggest earthquakes on record near Alta Sierra (M4.0 and up, since 1980)
| Mag | Location | Date (UTC) | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|
| M5.2 | 3 km N of Blairsden, California | Aug 10, 2001, 20:19 UTC | 83 km |
| M5.1 | 8 km SSW of Kingvale, California | Nov 28, 1980, 18:21 UTC | 53 km |
| M4.8 | 4 km N of Tahoe Vista, California | Oct 30, 1998, 09:53 UTC | 88 km |
| M4.8 | 8 km NNW of Tahoe Vista, California | Jun 26, 2005, 18:45 UTC | 85 km |
| M4.7 | 3 km WSW of Sattley, California | Oct 27, 2011, 06:37 UTC | 72 km |
| M4.7 | 19km NW of Truckee, CA | May 07, 2021, 04:35 UTC | 73 km |
| M4.6 | 10 km SSE of Sierra City, California | Dec 28, 1985, 19:01 UTC | 57 km |
| M4.5 | 3 km NE of East Quincy, California | Dec 26, 2008, 12:19 UTC | 92 km |
Nearby places
Grass Valley, CA (9 km) · Colfax, CA (10 km) · Lake of the Pines, CA (11 km) · Roseville, CA (48 km) · Yuba City, CA (49 km) · Rocklin, CA (42 km)
USGS data fetched Nov 04, 2026, 00:45 UTC · page built Nov 04, 2026, 00:45 UTC. How to read this page: recent-window counts cover M1.5+ events within 100 km; the 10-year layer is based on M3.0+ and the history layer on M4.0+ since 1980. Recording completeness varies by era and region — small quakes from early decades are under-recorded, so “no record” does not prove “never happened”. Depths are relative to sea level and can be slightly negative for shallow events in elevated terrain. Method: data & methodology.