M3.6 earthquake 7 km WSW of Hermosa Beach, California, United States
A magnitude 3.6 earthquake struck 7 km WSW of Hermosa Beach, California, United States at 08:40 local time (15:40 UTC) on 27 Sept 2026, at a depth of 12 km, according to USGS.
2111 reports to USGS “Did You Feel It?”
Data: USGS · updated 2026-09-28 17:05 UTC · reviewed
- Magnitude
- 3.6minor
moment magnitude (mw) - Depth
- 11.9 km
- Status
- Reviewed
- Origin time
- 2026-09-27 15:40:01 UTC
- Local: 27 Sept 2026, 08:40:01 (America/Los Angeles)
- Epicentre
- 33.843° N, 118.469° W
Circles show this event and others within 30 km from 7 days before to 30 days after. Lines: plate boundaries and GEM active faults. Open on the live map
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Est. shaking |
|---|---|---|
| Hermosa BeachCalifornia, United States · pop. 19,860 | 7 km | IVLight |
| Manhattan BeachCalifornia, United States · pop. 35,818 | 7 km | IIIWeak |
| Redondo BeachCalifornia, United States · pop. 68,166 | 7 km | IIIWeak |
| TorranceCalifornia, United States · pop. 143,592 | 12 km | IIIWeak |
| LawndaleCalifornia, United States · pop. 33,430 | 12 km | IIIWeak |
| Long BeachCalifornia, United States · pop. 474,140 | 27 km | IIWeak |
| Los AngelesCalifornia, United States · pop. 3,820,914 | 31 km | IIWeak |
| AnaheimCalifornia, United States · pop. 350,742 | 52 km | IIWeak |
Shaking is an estimate from the intensity prediction equation of Allen, Wald & Worden (2012), not an observation. Local ground and buildings can change it by a level or more. Likely felt out to about 25 km.
Every agency's solution
Agencies locate earthquakes with their own stations and methods, so their numbers differ. We match reports of the same event by time, distance and magnitude and show them side by side. The headline uses USGS · CI, which has been reviewed by an analyst.
| Agency | Magnitude | Depth | Epicentre | Time offset | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| USGS · CIheadlineSouthern California Seismic Network via U.S. Geological Survey | 3.6 mw | 11.9 km | 33.84° N, 118.47° W | – | Reviewed |
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How big was it?
Often felt by people at rest close to the epicentre, rarely causes damage.
It released roughly the energy of 3.2 t of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step means about 32 times more energy and 10 times larger waves on a seismogram. Depth matters too: at 12 km this was a shallow earthquake, which is felt more strongly at the surface than a deeper one of the same size.
M3.6 releases about 27× the energy of M2.6, and its waves are about 9× taller on a seismogram. Energy: 3.2 t of TNT vs 120 kg of TNT.
Each square is the energy of one M2.6. Energy from log₁₀E = 1.5M + 4.8.
Aftershocks and nearby activity
8 later earthquakes within 30 km; the largest was M3.2 34 days ago. Aftershock rates usually fall off roughly in proportion to 1/time.
Mainshock M3.6
8 later earthquakes nearby. Aftershock rates typically fall off roughly as 1/time (Omori's law).
| Time after mainshock (hours) | Magnitude | Depth (km) |
|---|---|---|
| 140.14 | 1.9 | 0 |
| 261.37 | 1.4 | 13 |
| 280.07 | 3.2 | 12 |
| 359.81 | 1.4 | 8 |
| 422.30 | 1.8 | 9 |
| 450.60 | 1.7 | 7 |
| 562.53 | 1.2 | 7 |
| 570.70 | 1.2 | 7 |
- 3.2Near Signal Hill, California, United States10-09 07:44
- 1.930 km W of Rancho Palos Verdes, California, United States10-03 11:48
- 1.814 km W of Manhattan Beach, California, United States10-15 05:57
- 1.711 km SSW of Long Beach, California, United States10-16 10:16
- 1.44 km E of Santa Monica, California, United States10-12 15:28
- 1.415 km SE of Malibu, California, United States10-08 13:02
- 1.212 km ENE of Santa Monica, California, United States10-21 10:21
- 1.27 km ENE of Topanga, California, United States10-21 02:12
Did you feel it?
Reports from people help show where shaking was strong. They are anonymous and shown here in aggregate.
Reports close 14 days after an earthquake.
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Event id ci41339927. First recorded here 28 Sept 2026, 17:32:08 UTC. Solutions: USGS · CI (usgs:ci41339927). Cite as: SeismoAtlas, “M3.6 earthquake 7 km WSW of Hermosa Beach, California, United States”, https://seismoatlas.com/earthquake/ci41339927-m3-6-earthquake-7-km-wsw-of-hermosa-beach-california-united-states, data from USGS.
JSON: /api/v1/events/ci41339927. SeismoAtlas is not an official warning service.