10.5 is a 2004 American disaster film directed by John Lafia which aired as a television miniseries in the United States on May 2, 2004, and May 3, 2004 on NBC.

[1] The plot focuses on a series of catastrophic earthquakes along the United States west coast, culminating in one measuring 10.5 on the Richter scale.

A quake of magnitude 7.9 is measured at the Earthquake centre, where Dr. Samantha Hill takes command, displacing Dr. Jordan Fisher.

After that, Dr. Hill predicts the next quake will happen at the San Andreas fault, which would wipe out the West Coast in its present shape killing 50 million people on the way.

Dr. Hill hypothesizes that they could "weld" the fault shut by letting it experience immense heat, which could only be created with nuclear bombs.

It seems to work, until Dr. Hill, concerned about southern California, observes a river flowing backwards, draining into the open fault.

In response to the airing of 10.5, the Southern California Earthquake Center added a section to their website about the science depicted in the film.