Three earthquakes hit California on Thursday, one as far south as Trabuco Canyon and a second all the way up to a spot off the coast of Eureka, according to the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS).

A third earthquake struck near Lytle Creek, California, registering a 2.5 on the Richter scale. Trabuco Canyon, which is close to Lytle Creek, registered 4.0. Both cities are near Los Angeles.

The northernmost earthquake, closest to Eureka, registered a 5.8 on the Richter scale. However, because it hit 100 miles off the coastline, the vibrations were not as strong when they reached land. ABC7 reports that residents of Ferndale, California, in Humboldt County, felt the earthquake, but there are currently no reports of damage or injuries.

California from above. The state was rocked by earthquakes on Thursday.

NASA

According to the USGS, when the earthquake hit at 8:39 a.m., the ripples of seismic activity reached from the southern coast of Oregon to nearly Ukiah, California, about 400 miles away.

Over the past seven days, California has experienced 15 earthquakes of magnitude 2.5 or greater up and down the state, including two that hit off the coast in the Pacific Ocean.

Many of the tremors occurred near or along the San Andreas fault, where tectonic plates shift along the western edge of the state. The San Andreas fault is known to be particularly prone to earthquakes, and scientists believe that it will someday rock the state with “The Big One.”

Smaller earthquakes often precede bigger ones, but it’s hard to say whether this activity is indicative of a bigger earthquake to come, and if so, when.

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Underwater seismic activity can sometimes cause tsunamis, which can cause major destruction when they reach land. The National Tsunami Warning Center tweeted that the earthquake off the coast of Northern California is not expected to cause a tsunami.

The California coast is part of the “Ring of Fire,” an area where there are an abnormal number of underwater volcanoes. Made up of the Pacific coastline of the U.S., Asia and the Pacific Islands, this area is prone to earthquakes.

Scientists predict that 2018 will be a particularly bad year for earthquakes. On Thursday, an even bigger earthquake registering a 6.2 on the Richter scale hit Japan.

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What is the Ring of Fire?

The Ring of Fire refers to a sprawling, horseshoe-shaped geological disaster zone in the Pacific, according to ABC News. The ring stretches 25,000 miles from New Zealand through Indonesia, the Philippines and Japan to Alaska, Canada and the West Coast down to South America. It contains 452 volcanoes and several tectonic plates in the earth’s crust.

Earth’s so-called ‘Ring of Fire’ is a horseshoe-shaped geological disaster zone that is a hot bed for tectonic and volcanic activity.

Roughly 90 per cent of the
world’s earthquakes occur in the belt, which is also home to more than 450 volcanoes. 

The seismic region stretches along the Pacific Ocean coastlines, where the Pacific Plate grinds against other plates that form the Earth’s crust.

It loops from New Zealand to Chile, passing through the coasts of Asia and the Americas on the way. 

In total, the loop makes up a 25,000-mile (40,000-kilometre) -long zone prone to frequent earthquakes and eruptions.

The region is susceptible to disasters because it is home to a vast number of ‘subduction zones’, areas where tectonic plates overlap.

Earthquakes are triggered when these plates scrape or slide underneath one another, and when that happens at sea it can spawn tsunamis.

Earthquakes are triggered when these plates scrape or slide underneath one another, and when that happens at sea it can spawn tsunamis.

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Of the recent string of natural disasters in the Ring of Fire, Professor Elders said: ‘It’s not a cause for concern. Activity in the region is subject to variation.’

Alaska’s 7.9 magnitude earthquake struck off Kodiak Island early Tuesday, prompting a tsunami warning for a large swath of the state’s coast.

A 7.9 magnitude earthquake struck off Kodiak Island, Alaska, early Tuesday, prompting a tsunami warning for a large swath of the state’s coast. Roughly 90 per cent of the world’s earthquakes occur in the Ring of Fire

Some residents fled to higher ground, but officials cancelled the warning following a few tense hours after waves failed to show up at coastal Alaskan communities.

Alaska’s Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management said there have been no reports of damage, so far.

On the other side of the Pacific, fifteen people, including eight soldiers, skiing on the slopes of a volcano in central Japan were injured Tuesday.

An eruption at Mount Kusatsu-Shirane near Tokyo, Japan, sparked an avalanche that killed one and left scores stranded up the mountain.

Also this week, a powerful earthquake struck the coast of Indonesia forcing thousands to evacuate.

The Indonesian island of Java was hit by the 6.4 magnitude earthquake on Tuesday.  

The country’s capital Jakarta was also affected by the earthquake but there were no immediate reports of damage or injuries.

There are 8 active volcanoes in California. Which ones top the watch list?

California is more than Earthquake Country. It’s Volcano Country, too. With eight active volcanoes, one of the most closely watched is just three hours up the highway from the state Capitol – Lassen.

“The threat is real,” says scientist Maggie Mangan of the USGS. Video contains archive footage of the last time Lassen erupted, in 1915.