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Location:
22km SSW of La Quinta, CA
Period:
25 Sep 2020 23:59:05 - 28 Sep 2020 02:07:00 (2 days 2 hours 7 minutes)
Volcanoes in 100km radius:
Salton Buttes(84km)
Earthquakes:
44
58 swarms found nearby.
2001
31 Oct
10 days 17 hours
471 earthquakes
2002
2 Jan
3 days 5 hours
53 earthquakes
23 Oct
2 days 17 hours
38 earthquakes
2003
S20031113.1(14.0km)
12 Nov
1 day 17 hours
31 earthquakes
2005
S20050612.1(12.3km)
12 Jun
26 days 19 hours
904 earthquakes
19 Aug
3 days 23 hours
96 earthquakes
2009
S20090726.1(29.3km)
25 Jul
1 day 19 hours
29 earthquakes
S20090818.1(24.3km)
17 Aug
1 day 21 hours
39 earthquakes
2010
8 Feb
3 days 22 hours
44 earthquakes
5 Apr
5 days 18 hours
62 earthquakes
12 Jun
9 days 5 hours
239 earthquakes
7 Jul
35 days 19 hours
1709 earthquakes
2 Dec
10 days 0 hours
68 earthquakes
2011
18 Mar
1 day 23 hours
34 earthquakes
S20110416.1(10.6km)
15 Apr
7 days 6 hours
90 earthquakes
26 Jul
4 days 1 hours
42 earthquakes
2012
20 May
4 days 2 hours
45 earthquakes
21 Jun
3 days 19 hours
39 earthquakes
29 Jun
2 days 0 hours
31 earthquakes
2013
10 Mar
72 days 2 hours
2118 earthquakes
S20130920.1(17.0km)
19 Sep
1 day 10 hours
31 earthquakes
21 Sep
8 days 10 hours
91 earthquakes
30 Dec
8 days 18 hours
91 earthquakes
2014
S20140418.1(29.2km)
18 Apr
8 days 7 hours
191 earthquakes
7 Aug
1 day 13 hours
28 earthquakes
2015
31 Mar
38 days 7 hours
543 earthquakes
S20150531.1(24.4km)
31 May
2 days 9 hours
45 earthquakes
2016
9 Jun
33 days 4 hours
1773 earthquakes
19 Jul
6 days 5 hours
68 earthquakes
25 Oct
5 days 21 hours
73 earthquakes
29 Dec
4 days 7 hours
48 earthquakes
2017
S20170503.1(29.8km)
2 May
5 days 5 hours
91 earthquakes
S20170510.1(29.7km)
9 May
15 days 6 hours
129 earthquakes
9 Nov
2 days 20 hours
44 earthquakes
2018
S20180203.1(24.3km)
2 Feb
28 days 21 hours
426 earthquakes
S20180305.1(24.0km)
4 Mar
19 days 17 hours
203 earthquakes
13 Mar
1 day 13 hours
26 earthquakes
S20180403.1(29.6km)
2 Apr
10 days 14 hours
197 earthquakes
S20180630.1(28.4km)
29 Jun
41 days 14 hours
582 earthquakes
S20180811.1(27.6km)
11 Aug
209 days 15 hours
6032 earthquakes
2019
S20190426.1(27.8km)
25 Apr
1 day 22 hours
37 earthquakes
2020
4 Apr
40 days 3 hours
2928 earthquakes
2 Jun
2 days 12 hours
63 earthquakes
S20200926.2(29.9km)
25 Sep
3 days 10 hours
42 earthquakes
2021
S20210921.1(29.1km)
20 Sep
8 days 7 hours
216 earthquakes
2022
13 Jan
4 days 5 hours
157 earthquakes
18 May
1 day 8 hours
29 earthquakes
S20220714.1(16.1km)
13 Jul
1 day 12 hours
26 earthquakes
S20220825.1(19.9km)
25 Aug
1 day 3 hours
27 earthquakes
22 Sep
1 day 18 hours
31 earthquakes
29 Sep
4 days 5 hours
69 earthquakes
S20221231.1(12.6km)
31 Dec
2 days 20 hours
86 earthquakes
2023
S20230324.1(29.1km)
23 Mar
2 days 2 hours
50 earthquakes
S20230326.1(29.4km)
25 Mar
2 days 6 hours
38 earthquakes
2024
S20240621.1(10.5km)
20 Jun
3 days 0 hours
41 earthquakes
S20240829.1(29.6km)
28 Aug
2 days 1 hours
31 earthquakes
2025
S20250516.1(25.4km)
16 May
4 days 7 hours
45 earthquakes
16 Nov
3 days 16 hours
56 earthquakes
AI-generated article — for informational and entertainment purposes only. May contain inaccuracies. Full disclaimerFound an error?

Seismic Swarm S20200926.1 Near La Quinta, California

A seismic swarm designated S20200926.1 occurred 22 km south-southwest of La Quinta in Riverside County, California. The sequence began at 23:59 UTC on 25 September 2020 and concluded at 02:07 UTC on 28 September 2020, spanning 50 hours and 7 minutes. During this interval, 44 earthquakes were recorded, with magnitudes ranging from 0.0 to 2.3 and focal depths between 4 km and 15 km.

The swarm initiated with a magnitude 1.2 event at 13 km depth. Subsequent activity clustered primarily between 12 km and 14 km depth during the first day, followed by shallower events reaching 4–8 km on 26 and 27 September. Notable events included a magnitude 2.1 quake at 13 km depth on 26 September at 14:41 UTC and a magnitude 2.3 event at 5 km depth later that day at 16:56 UTC. Activity tapered with smaller events through 28 September.

This region lies within the Coachella Valley segment of the San Andreas Fault system and the broader Salton Trough, a tectonically active pull-apart basin formed by right-lateral strike-slip motion along the Pacific–North American plate boundary. The area experiences frequent microseismicity due to distributed faulting, geothermal activity, and sediment loading in the Imperial and Coachella Valleys. Historical records document persistent swarm behavior linked to fluid migration and aseismic slip on subsidiary faults.

Since 2000, 44 swarms have been identified in the immediate vicinity. Annual counts include one swarm each in 2001, 2003, 2019; two each in 2002, 2005, 2009, 2014, 2015; three each in 2011, 2012, 2017, 2020; four each in 2013, 2016; five in 2010; and six in 2018. These recurrent swarms reflect the region’s characteristic low-magnitude, clustered seismicity rather than mainshock–aftershock sequences.

Analysis of S20200926.1 shows a typical swarm pattern: rapid onset, mixed depths, and absence of a dominant mainshock. Most events remained below magnitude 2.0, consistent with background rates in this portion of the San Andreas system. No damage or felt reports of significance were associated with the sequence.

References

USGS Earthquake Catalog (earthquake.usgs.gov)
Southern California Seismic Network (scsn.org)
California Geological Survey Fault Activity Map