Sunday’s magnitude 4.1 earthquake near Malibu is part of a major earthquake pattern seen in Southern California.
The area has experienced many medium earthquakes since 2024. All of 2024, Southern California experienced 15 earthquake sequences in at least one earthquake of magnitude 4 or higher, according to counts by seismologist Lucy Jones, a research associate at Karistec. This is the highest annual total in the last 65 years, exceeding the 13 seen in 1988.
Sunday’s earthquake was Southern California’s first magnitude 4 earthquake to date in 2025, Jones said on Sunday.
In the Malibu region, three earthquakes have been seen above magnitude 4 in the last 13 months.
Are these joys a sign of a major earthquake to come?
Experts have warned for months that the latest earthquake hasn’t made it even clearer about the timing of Southern California’s next catastrophic earthquake.
“Seismologists have spent decades reading tea leaves to search for patterns,” said Susan Huff, a seismologist at the US Geological Survey, a seismologist.
“The earthquake network was set up in Southern California 100 years ago,” she said. And that didn’t work. ”
One thing is clear, she said: “No one found a statistically meaningful pattern before a major earthquake.”
But recent earthquake bliss should bolster the threat posed by the state’s infamous, aggressive seismic landscape, experts say, and serve as a reminder of how many Californians live in the danger zone.
For example, the East Side LA earthquake in the summer was concentrated in faults associated with the Puente Hills Thrust fault system, located under downtown LA and downtown Lastra County, San Gabriel Valley and Swass in North Orange County.
Areas near Malibu have had more severe earthquakes than they had in the past. On January 18, 1989, an earthquake occurred eight miles southeast of Malibu Point, beneath Santa Monica Bay. Several people were injured, items fell off shelves in the store, and several windows were broken, according to the Southern California Earthquake Data Center.
On New Year’s Day, 1979, a magnitude 5.2 earthquake occurred about eight miles south of Malibu Point as it collided with USC during the Rose Bowl game in Michigan.
“Some of the stadium’s fans were wary of the shaking, but the game continued,” the data center said.
Where did you see recent seismic activity?
Malibu – The Malibu region was a hot spot. Exactly 13 months ago (February 9, 2024), there was an earthquake with a magnitude of 4.6. It was strong enough to throw items from the counter. On September 12th, there was a magnitude of 4.7. It was so amazing that the mayor and his wife became pigeons under the kitchen table.
ONTARIO – A magnitude 4 earthquake struck before dawn on October 6th near Ontario International Airport. Ontario, one of the most populous cities in San Bernardino County, had five earthquakes in the month before the October 6th earthquake.
East Side – East Side LA was rattled with a magnitude 4.4 earthquake centered around El Sereno on August 12th and a magnitude 3.4 on June 2nd.
Kearn County – The 5.2 earthquake, the strongest earthquake to attack the area in three years, shook Southern California on August 6th, along with the northwest epicenter of Grapevine. Another widely felt Quake 4.9 was attacked on July 29, about 13 miles northeast of Burstow.
How about the damage?
The earthquake on Sunday was felt throughout the region, but no reports of damage were reported.
This coincides with last year’s experience. The 2024 earthquake rattled the area, but the damage was clearly modest, including items that were knocked out of the shelf.
Our Earthquake Guide
Check out Unshaken’s guide, a guide to understanding earthquake preparation and seismology.
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