Southern California Shaken by Moderate Earthquake
Recent Earthquakes in California and Nevada
Light Quake Also Hits Southern California
A moderately strong 5.2-magnitude earthquake struck Southern California on Tuesday, according to the United States Geological Survey (USGS). The temblor occurred at 12:20 p.m. and was centered about 25 miles east of Ridgecrest, California. There were no immediate reports of damage or injuries.
On Monday, a light 4.4-magnitude earthquake also struck Southern California. That quake occurred at 1:15 a.m. and was centered in the same area as the larger quake. Again, there were no reports of damage or injuries.
The USGS reports that the larger quake was the potential mainshock of an earthquake sequence. A sequence is a group of earthquakes that occur in the same area over a period of time. The largest earthquake in a sequence is called the mainshock. The other earthquakes in the sequence are called aftershocks.
There have been 289 aftershocks in the sequence so far. The largest aftershock was a 4.7-magnitude quake that occurred on Tuesday afternoon.
The USGS says that the earthquake sequence is expected to continue for several days or even weeks. However, the aftershocks are expected to become smaller and less frequent over time.
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