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Location:
14km ESE of Ridgecrest, CA
Period:
3 May 2013 04:59:57 - 5 May 2013 03:20:05 (1 day 22 hours 20 minutes)
Volcanoes in 100km radius:
None
Earthquakes:
37
34 swarms found nearby.
2019
4 Jul
221 days 12 hours
22493 earthquakes
4 Jul
75 days 9 hours
8149 earthquakes
S20190708.2(28.0km)
7 Jul
4 days 17 hours
70 earthquakes
S20190712.1(23.0km)
11 Jul
16 hours
29 earthquakes
S20190812.1(11.7km)
12 Aug
3 days 6 hours
50 earthquakes
S20190825.1(26.3km)
24 Aug
3 days 7 hours
165 earthquakes
8 Sep
1 day 13 hours
47 earthquakes
S20190910.1(18.5km)
10 Sep
3 days 21 hours
145 earthquakes
1 Oct
4 days 13 hours
127 earthquakes
S20191005.1(27.6km)
5 Oct
3 days 16 hours
147 earthquakes
5 Oct
1 day 18 hours
26 earthquakes
13 Oct
1 day 23 hours
36 earthquakes
15 Oct
2 days 23 hours
108 earthquakes
30 Nov
2 days 16 hours
49 earthquakes
1 Dec
9 days 6 hours
252 earthquakes
13 Dec
22 hours
27 earthquakes
15 Dec
6 days 12 hours
188 earthquakes
22 Dec
10 days 4 hours
196 earthquakes
2020
10 Jan
22 days 10 hours
422 earthquakes
22 Jan
17 hours
24 earthquakes
S20200208.1(10.1km)
7 Feb
1 day 19 hours
44 earthquakes
12 Feb
5 days 22 hours
159 earthquakes
21 Feb
5 days 20 hours
94 earthquakes
S20200322.1(15.6km)
21 Mar
10 days 13 hours
140 earthquakes
14 Apr
7 days 19 hours
130 earthquakes
8 May
3 days 21 hours
69 earthquakes
25 May
1 day 7 hours
31 earthquakes
3 Jun
9 days 16 hours
525 earthquakes
S20200708.3(30.0km)
7 Jul
13 days 9 hours
239 earthquakes
S20200727.1(13.6km)
27 Jul
13 days 20 hours
183 earthquakes
13 Aug
7 days 2 hours
81 earthquakes
21 Sep
5 days 2 hours
99 earthquakes
2021
S20210404.1(27.4km)
3 Apr
11 days 13 hours
124 earthquakes
2022
S20220715.1(13.9km)
14 Jul
4 days 3 hours
55 earthquakes
AI-generated article — for informational and entertainment purposes only. May contain inaccuracies. Full disclaimerFound an error?

Seismic Swarm S20130504.1: Analysis of Activity Near Ridgecrest, California

Seismic swarm S20130504.1 occurred 14 km east-southeast of Ridgecrest in Kern County, California, within the tectonically active Eastern California Shear Zone. The sequence began at 04:59 on 3 May 2013 and concluded at 03:20 on 5 May 2013, spanning 46 hours and 20 minutes. During this period, 37 earthquakes were recorded, with magnitudes ranging from 0.3 to 2.0 and focal depths primarily between 4 and 7 km.

The swarm exhibited typical characteristics of clustered seismicity without a dominant mainshock-aftershock pattern. Events were concentrated on 4 May, with the largest shock reaching magnitude 2.0 at 05:28. Most events occurred at depths of 5 km, suggesting activity along shallow crustal structures. Such swarms often reflect fluid migration or stress redistribution along fault networks rather than a single rupture.

Ridgecrest lies at the transition between the Sierra Nevada and the Mojave Desert, where northwest-trending right-lateral strike-slip faults accommodate Pacific-North America plate motion. The local geology features Quaternary alluvium overlying Mesozoic granitic basement and Paleozoic metasedimentary rocks. The region forms part of the Walker Lane-Eastern California Shear Zone, which absorbs approximately 20 percent of the relative plate boundary strain. Nearby faults include segments of the Garlock Fault to the south and the Little Lake Fault Zone, both capable of producing moderate earthquakes.

Historical seismicity in the area includes multiple swarms linked to the Coso Volcanic Field, located roughly 40 km north of Ridgecrest. Geothermal activity and magmatic intrusion at Coso have triggered episodic earthquake clusters since monitoring began in the 1980s. The 2013 swarm aligns with this pattern of distributed, low-magnitude activity along secondary faults east of the main Sierra Nevada frontal fault.

No damage or felt reports were associated with S20130504.1, consistent with its modest magnitudes. The sequence provides insight into background strain accumulation ahead of larger events, such as the 2019 Ridgecrest earthquake sequence that occurred on previously unmapped faults in the same vicinity.

References

United States Geological Survey Earthquake Catalog (earthquake.usgs.gov)
California Geological Survey, Regional Geologic Maps
Southern California Earthquake Data Center, Seismicity Archives