The 1971 San Fernando earthquake occurred in the early morning of February 9 in the foothills of the San Gabriel Mountains in southern California. The unanticipated thrust earthquake had a magnitude of 6.5 on the scale and 6.6 on the scale, and a maximum Mercalli intensity of XI (Extreme). The event was one in a series that affected Los Angeles County during the late 20th century. Damage was locally severe in the northern San Fernando Valley and surface faulting was extensive to the south of the epicenter in the mountains, as well as urban settings along city streets and neighborhoods. Uplift and other effects affected private homes and businesses.
The 1999 Düzce earthquake occurred on 12 November at with a moment magnitude of 7.2 and a maximum Mercalli intensity of IX (Violent), causing damage and at least 845 fatalities in Düzce, Turkey. The epicenter was approximately 100 km (62 mi) to the east of the extremely destructive 1999 İzmit earthquake that happened nearly three months earlier. Both strike-slip earthquakes were caused by movement on the North Anatolian Fault.
The 1999 Hector Mine earthquake occurred in Southern California, United States, on October 16 at 02:46:50 PDT. Its moment magnitude was 7.1 and the earthquake was preceded by 12 foreshocks, the largest of which had a magnitude of 3.8. The event is thought to have been triggered by the 1992 Landers earthquake which occurred seven years earlier. It also deformed nearby faults vertically and horizontally. The earthquake's hypocenter was at a depth of 20 kilometers and its epicenter at 34.603° N 116.265° W.
The 1952 Kern County earthquake occurred on July 21 in the southern San Joaquin Valley and measured 7.3 on the moment magnitude scale. The main shock occurred at 4:52 am Pacific Daylight Time, killed 12 people, injured hundreds more and caused an estimated $60 million in property damage. A small sector of damage near Bealville corresponded to a maximum Mercalli intensity of XI (Extreme), though this intensity rating was not representative of the majority of damage. The earthquake occurred on the White Wolf Fault near the community of Wheeler Ridge and was the strongest to occur in California since the 1906 San Francisco earthquake.
The 2000 Turkmenistan earthquake took place at 8:11 p.m. Moscow Time on December 6 and had a magnitude of 7.0. The intensity of the earthquake reached VII at its epicenter, and IV at the Turkmen capital of Ashgabat. The epicentre was located approximately 25 kilometers north of the city of Balkanabat and 125 kilometres southeast of Türkmenbaşy. There were unconfirmed reports that the quake killed up to 11 people and injured 5 others.
The 1986 Chalfant Valley earthquake struck southern Mono County near Bishop and Chalfant, California at Pacific Daylight Time on July 21. With a moment magnitude of 6.2 and a maximum Mercalli intensity of VI (Strong), the shock injured two people and caused property damage estimated at $2.7 million in the affected areas. There was a significant foreshock and aftershock sequence that included a few moderate events, and was the last in a series of three earthquakes that affected southern California and the northern Owens Valley in July 1986.
The 1948 Desert Hot Springs earthquake occurred on December 4 at 3:43 p.m. Pacific Standard Time with a moment magnitude of 6.4 and a maximum Mercalli intensity of VII. The shock was felt from the central coast of California in the north, and to Baja California in the south, and came at a time when earthquake research in southern California resumed following the Second World War. It was one of two events in the 20th century that have occurred near a complex region of the southern San Andreas Fault system where it traverses the San Gorgonio Pass and the northern Coachella Valley. Damage was not severe, but some serious injuries occurred, and aftershocks continued until 1957.
The 1979 Imperial Valley earthquake occurred at 16:16 Pacific Daylight Time on 15 October just south of the Mexico–United States border. It affected Imperial Valley in Southern California and Mexicali Valley in northern Baja California. The earthquake had a relatively shallow hypocenter and caused property damage in the United States estimated at US$30 million. The irrigation systems in the Imperial Valley were badly affected, but no deaths occurred. It was the largest earthquake to occur in the contiguous United States since the 1971 San Fernando earthquake eight years earlier.
The 1991 Sierra Madre earthquake occurred on June 28 at with a moment magnitude of 5.6 and a maximum Mercalli intensity of VII. The thrust earthquake resulted in two deaths, around 100 injuries, and damage estimated at $33.5–40 million. The event occurred beneath the San Gabriel Mountains on the Clamshell–Sawpit Fault, which is a part of the Sierra Madre–Cucamonga Fault System. Instruments captured the event at a number of strong motion stations in Southern California.
The 1979 Coyote Lake earthquake occurred at on August 6 with a moment magnitude of 5.7 and a maximum Mercalli Intensity of VII. The shock occurred on the Calaveras Fault near Coyote Lake in Santa Clara County, California and resulted in a number of injuries, including some that required hospitalization. Most of the $500,000 in damage that was caused was non-structural, but several businesses were closed for repairs. Data from numerous strong motion instruments was used to determine the type, depth, and extent of slip. A non-destructive aftershock sequence that lasted throughout the remainder of the month was of interest to seismologists, especially with regard to fault creep, and following the event local governments evaluated their response to the incident.
The 1957 San Francisco earthquake occurred on March 22 at 11:44:22 local time with a moment magnitude of 5.7 and a maximum Mercalli Intensity of VII. It was located just off the San Francisco Peninsula near the San Andreas Fault and was felt in a limited portion of Northern and Central California. There was a non-destructive foreshock and aftershock sequence that lasted for several months. With financial losses of around US$1 million, damage was considered minimal, with one death and forty injuries.
The 1986 North Palm Springs earthquake occurred on July 8 at with a moment magnitude of 6.0 and a maximum Mercalli Intensity of VII. The shock occurred in a complex setting along the San Andreas Fault Zone where it bisects San Gorgonio Mountain and San Jacinto Peak at the San Gorgonio Pass and was the first in a series of three earthquakes that affected southern California and the northern Owens Valley in July 1986. Numerous strong motion instruments recorded the event, one of which showed relatively high accelerations. Between 29 and 40 people were injured, and financial losses were estimated to be in the range of $4.5–6 million.
The 1980 Eureka earthquake occurred on November 8 at along the northern coastal area of California in the United States. With a moment magnitude of 7.3 and a maximum Mercalli intensity of VII, this strike-slip earthquake was the largest to occur in California in 28 years. Although damage was considered light, several loss estimates equaled or exceeded $2 million, and six injuries resulted when two vehicles came down with the partial collapse of a highway overpass on US 101 in Fields Landing. The north coast of California experiences frequent plate boundary earthquakes near the Mendocino Triple Junction and intraplate events also occur within the Gorda plate.
The 1918 San Jacinto earthquake occurred in extreme eastern San Diego County in Southern California on April 21 at . The shock had a moment magnitude of 6.7 and a maximum Mercalli intensity of IX (Violent). Several injuries and one death occurred with total losses estimated to be $200,000.
The 1987 Superstition Hills earthquake affected the Imperial Valley of California and Baja California on November 24, nearly 12 hours after a 6.0 foreshock, called the Elmore Ranch earthquake. The mainshock, measuring 6.5, struck at 17:54 PST, along the Superstition Hills segment of the San Jacinto Fault Zone. The earthquake generated a 27 km (17 mi) surface rupture with additional postseismic slip continuing for a year.
The 1968 Borrego Mountain earthquake occurred on April 8, at 18:28 PST in the geologically active Salton Trough of Southern California. The Salton Trough represents a pull-apart basin formed by movements along major faults. This region is dominated by major strike-slip faults one of them being the San Jacinto Fault which produced the 1968 earthquake. The mainshock's epicenter was near the unincorporated community of Ocotillo Wells in San Diego County. The moment magnitude (Mw ) 6.6 strike-slip earthquake struck with a focal depth of 11.1 km (6.9 mi). The zone of surface rupture was assigned a maximum Modified Mercalli intensity (MMI) of VII.
The 1997 Bojnurd earthquake occurred on 4 February at 14:07 IRST in Iran. The epicenter of the 6.5 earthquake was in the Kopet Dag mountains of North Khorasan, near the Iran–Turkmenistan border, about 579 km (360 mi) northeast of Tehran. The earthquake is characterized by shallow strike-slip faulting in a zone of active faults. Seismic activity is present as the Kopet Dag is actively accommodating tectonics through faulting. The earthquake left 88 dead, 1,948 injured, and affected 173 villages, including four which were destroyed. Damage also occurred in Shirvan and Bojnord counties. The total cost of damage was estimated to be over US$ 30 million.
The February 2004 Nabire earthquakes began on February 6 at 06.05 WIT in Nabire Regency, Central Papua, Indonesia. The first of three large earthquakes measured 7.0 on the moment magnitude scale (Mw ). It was followed a few days later by two strong shocks, measuring Mw 7.3 and 6.7, respectively. The earthquakes were felt at Nabire with a maximum Mercalli intensity of VI (Strong). At least 37 people were killed and were 682 injured, and over 2,600 buildings were damaged or destroyed.
The 1992 Joshua Tree earthquake occurred at 9:50:25 p.m. PDT on April 22 in Southern California. The magnitude 6.2 earthquake struck under the Little San Bernardino Mountains, near the town of Joshua Tree, California. Though no deaths were reported, the earthquake caused 32 injuries. A maximum Mercalli intensity of VII was observed in Joshua Tree and caused light to moderate damage. The event preceded the Landers and Big Bear earthquakes by two months but is now recognized as the beginning of a series of major earthquakes that culminated in two events on June 28, 1992.
The 1980 Livermore earthquake occurred on January 24 at 11:00 PST in California. The epicenter of the 5.8 earthquake was a hilly area 12 km (7.5 mi) southeast of Mount Diablo and north of Livermore Valley. The earthquake had a maximum Modified Mercalli intensity of VII. Forty four people were injured and damage across the San Francisco Bay Area totaled $11.5 million, with the majority inflicted at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory.
