Two earthquakes jolted California early Sunday, with shaking reported across the South Bay and in communities farther east.
The first, measuring magnitude 3.5, struck shortly after 7:20 a.m. A magnitude-2.6 tremor followed roughly 20 minutes later. According to the United States Geological Survey, residents felt the activity from San Jose to Walnut Creek.
The back-to-back earthquakes come during a period of increased seismic activity in California, following several clusters of smaller tremors in Southern California in recent weeks.
The USGS recorded more than 60 earthquakes across the region on one recent Saturday. Most were minor events below magnitude 2.0.
Several of those earthquakes were concentrated around the Los Angeles area.
A magnitude-3.1 earthquake struck near Compton on Sept. 17, sending shaking into Long Beach, Downey and Paramount. It followed another magnitude-3.2 quake near Compton earlier in the month.
Additional recent activity was reported farther south and offshore, including two earthquakes southeast of Catalina Island that occurred just minutes apart.
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During the same weekend, a separate magnitude-3.4 earthquake rattled parts of the San Francisco Bay Area.
Although the latest tremors were relatively weak, they come as scientists continue to highlight the long-term risk of a powerful earthquake along one of California’s major fault systems.
Caltech seismologist Dr. Lucy Jones has said the San Andreas Fault could generate a catastrophic earthquake, while stressing that researchers cannot determine precisely when such an event will happen.
Jones has previously modeled a magnitude-7.8 rupture on the southern San Andreas Fault. That scenario would bring extended, potentially devastating shaking to large portions of Southern California.
The simulations suggest a major rupture could severely damage transportation networks, water infrastructure and other essential services across the region.
Researchers at the University of Bern have also studied seismic pressure near Cajon Pass, an area where the San Andreas and San Jacinto faults intersect.
Scientists have referred to the region as a possible “earthquake gate” as they investigate whether a future rupture could move across both fault systems.
