QuakeScout
Magnitude3.2

Reviewed by USGSAlaska19d ago

M3.2 earthquake 228 km S of False Pass, Alaska

Tuesday, September 8, 2026, 05:17:36 UTC · 52.804°N, 163.129°W

A magnitude 3.2 earthquake struck 228 km S of False Pass, Alaska on Tuesday, September 8, 2026, 05:17:36 UTC, at a depth of 26.2 km (shallow).

Magnitude
3.2
Minor · ml
Depth
26 km
Shallow
Felt reports
0
Did You Feel It?
Est. shaking
—
No ShakeMap
PAGER alert
None
Not issued
Tsunami
No flag
USGS feed

Outlined circle: this earthquakeDashed circle: 50 km aftershock search area

In context

How big was it, and why here?

Energy released

951 kg of TNT

That is about 1/15,825 of the Hiroshima bomb. A magnitude 5.0 releases about 501 times more energy.

Tectonic setting

40 km

from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the North American and Pacific plates. Earthquakes cluster along boundaries like this one, where plates collide, pull apart or slide past each other.

Depth: shallow

26 km

Shallow earthquakes (under 70 km) produce the strongest surface shaking for their size, so they are the ones most likely to cause damage near the epicenter.

Did You Feel It?

Where it was felt

No “Did You Feel It?” reports have been published for this event yet. If you felt it, you can add your report on the USGS website.

I felt it — report to USGS ↗

USGS PAGER estimate

Who was exposed to shaking

USGS publishes PAGER impact estimates for significant earthquakes, usually within an hour. No PAGER estimate is available for this event.

After the main event

Aftershocks within 50 km

USGS lists 2 M2.5+ earthquakes within 50 km since this event; the largest was M5.0 on September 20, 2026. Most nearby activity right after a large earthquake is aftershocks, which usually become less frequent over days and weeks.

M3M4M51h6h1d3d7d14dMainshock M3.2
Time after the mainshock on a logarithmic scale (first hours stretched), magnitude on the vertical axis. M2.5+ events from USGS.
  1. 5.0244 km SSE of False Pass, Alaska6d ago · 44 km E of this epicenter
  2. 2.8192 km SE of Akutan, Alaska16d ago · 39 km NW of this epicenter

Regional history

Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km

USGS lists 449 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:

  1. 8.6The 1946 Unimak Island, Alaska EarthquakeApril 1, 1946 · 79 km N of this epicenter
  2. 7.32025 Sand Point, Alaska EarthquakeJuly 16, 2025 · 263 km NE of this epicenter
  3. 7.22023 Sand Point, Alaska EarthquakeJuly 16, 2023 · 236 km NE of this epicenter
  4. 7.190 km SE of King Cove, AlaskaMay 14, 1948 · 237 km NE of this epicenter
  5. 7.139 km S of Akutan, AlaskaMarch 22, 1957 · 206 km NW of this epicenter
  6. 7.071 km SE of King Cove, AlaskaMay 30, 1991 · 220 km NE of this epicenter

History · NOAA

Deadliest earthquakes in this area

NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 11 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 169 recorded deaths. The most severe:

  1. 1946M8.6

    Unimak Island

    1 Apr 1946 · 79 km away · intensity VI

    168 deaths$26 million damagetsunami

  2. 2023M7.2

    Alaska Peninsula

    16 Jul 2023 · 241 km away · intensity VI

    1 deathtsunami

  3. 1965M6.5

    Aleutian Islands: Fox Islands

    2 Jul 1965 · 297 km away

    Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami

  4. 1788M8.0

    Alaska Peninsula

    6 Aug 1788 · 281 km away

    tsunami

  5. 1902M7.8

    Aleutian Islands: Fox Islands

    1 Jan 1902 · 299 km away

  6. 1948M7.5

    Alaska Peninsula

    14 May 1948 · 235 km away

NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.

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