A strong earthquake measuring 5.9 on the Ricther scale struck near the central California town of Parkfield on Tuesday, according to the US Geological Survey.

The quake occurred at 10:15 a.m. local time (18:15 GMT) Tuesday,11 kilometers south of Parkfield. The hypocentral depth is 8 kilometers, the US Geological Survey said.

The quake was felt as far north as San Francisco and the California state capital of Sacramento.

A series of aftershocks quickly rattled the area, one with a preliminary 5.0 magnitude four minutes after the main earthquake and three others 4.1 or above.

Police in Paso Robles, about 26 kilometers southwest of Parkfield, said there are no reports of damage or injuries so far. Paso Robles was scene of an earthquake that killed two people in December 2003.

"It rattled everything hanging on the walls and the chandelier was swinging. It didn't do any damage to our house. There were two shakers, one right after the other," a resident of Paso Robles told local reporters.

Parkfield, population 37, is located on the notorious San Andreas fault and known as the earthquake capital of California. Six magnitude 6.0 earthquakes have occurred on the San Andreas fault near the town with apparent regularity -- one approximately every 22 years.

The USGS even named its major longterm earthquake research project the Parkfield Experiment.

"This is earthquake country. It's a larger earthquake than what usually occurs, but it's not unprecedented," said US Geological Survey's spokeswoman Stephanie Hanna. "We expect big earthquakes in this area, but don't know when they'll occur."