A mild earthquake rattled Los Angeles on Tuesday just two days after a moderate tremor that struck a densely populated area and put the sprawling California metropolis on edge.

The 4.1 magnitude quake struck at 3:49 pm (2249 GMT) and shook buildings across a wide area of Los Angeles. There were no immediate reports of injuries or major damage, officials said.

The quake was centered just 10 miles (16 kilometers) southwest of downtown Los Angeles at a depth of 12.1 kilometers, the United States Geological Survey (USGS) said, very close to where a 4.7 quake struck on Sunday night.

The reading was based on the open-ended Moment Magnitude scale, now used by US seismologists, which measures the area of the fault that ruptured and the total energy released.

USGS seismologist Morgan Page said Tuesday's quake was likely an aftershock from the earlier temblor and appeared to have struck on the Newport-Inglewood fault. Further aftershocks were likely, Page said.

"There's about a five percent that one of those aftershocks will be greater than 4.1 but most likely they will be smaller," Page told KCAL9 television. "You wouldn't expect structural damage with an earthquake this small."

A 5.4 earthquake jolted Los Angeles last July, the most powerful seismic shock to rock the city in 14 years.

Geologists say an earthquake capable of causing widespread destruction is 99 percent certain of hitting California within the next 30 years.

A study published last year said a 7.8 magnitude quake could kill 1,800 people, injure 50,000 more and damage 300,000 buildings.

A 6.7 earthquake in Los Angeles in 1994 left at least 60 people dead and caused an estimated 10 billion dollars in damage, while a 6.9 quake in San Francisco in 1989 claimed 67 lives.

The 1906 San Francisco earthquake remains the most destructive in California history, leaving more than 3,000 people dead and razing tens of thousands of buildings. The quake was calculated as a 7.8 magnitude shaker.