Earthquake Information

Caltech's 24-Hour Earthquake Hotline for Media: (626) 449-2631
(Calls from members of the media only will be returned immediately.)

To Get Earthquake Information Quickly

Los Angeles-area quake data
California statewide quake data
ShakeMaps: Maps of quake intensity for broadcast TV segments
Did You Feel It?: Citizen reports of shaking and damage
Caltech ShakeMovies: Videos of quake shock waves for broadcast TV segments (Please note: Earthquake movies will become available for download approximately 45 minutes after a quake of magnitude 3.5 or greater in Southern California.)
Rapid Earthquake Notification mailing list: Alerts available via email from USGS provide the exact time, magnitude, and location of earthquakes just minutes after they occur.

Media Center Press Briefings at Caltech

Seismologists from Caltech and the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) will typically be available to reporters for briefings in the Media Center at the Caltech Seismological Laboratory immediately following widely felt quakes both locally and throughout the United States, as well as following significant international quakes. To find out if the center is open, or to schedule an interview, please call the 24-hour earthquake hotline (for media only) at (626) 449-2631.

Directions: The Media Center is located at the northeast corner of California Boulevard and Wilson Avenue in Pasadena, on the second floor of the South Mudd building in room 269. Media trucks can park on the sidewalk, from which they can access an outside AV panel that allows for video feeds to the trucks.

Mirrored Sites for Recent Earthquakes

In the event of a major earthquake, the traffic to the main USGS sites may make it difficult to access those links. The following mirrored sites will receive and disseminate the same information:

Southern California Earthquake Data Center: recent earthquakes in California and Nevada
Pasadena field office for the USGS
Real-time earthquake map
California Integrated Seismic Network earthquake information

Early Warning Technology

Caltech is a partner in the development of an Earthquake Early Warning system that eventually could provide advance warning to citizens in the seconds prior to an earthquake. For more information, check the Earthquake Early Warning Project's FAQ.