Reviewed by USGSAlaska62y ago
M5.5 earthquake in Rat Islands, Aleutian Islands, Alaska
Friday, February 19, 1965, 18:52:43 UTC · 51.103°N, 178.496°E
A magnitude 5.5 earthquake struck in Rat Islands, Aleutian Islands, Alaska on Friday, February 19, 1965, 18:52:43 UTC, at a depth of 25.8 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M5.8 on February 18, 1965.
- Magnitude
- 5.5
- Moderate · mw
- 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: 75 km aftershock search area
In context
How big was it, and why here?
Energy released
3 kilotons of TNT
That is about 1/5 of the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 6 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.
Tectonic setting
53 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 75 km
USGS lists 1 M2.5+ earthquake within 75 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M5.6 on March 5, 1965. Most nearby activity right after a large earthquake is aftershocks, which usually become less frequent over days and weeks.
Regional history
Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km
USGS lists 178 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 8.71965 Western Aleutian Islands (Hawadax/Rat Islands) EarthquakeFebruary 4, 1965 · 22 km NE of this epicenter
- 8.31906 Western Aleutian Islands (Hawadax/Rat Islands) EarthquakeAugust 17, 1906 · 86 km N of this epicenter
- 7.4265 km WSW of Adak, AlaskaFebruary 4, 1965 · 85 km NE of this epicenter
- 7.388 km WSW of Adak, AlaskaJuly 7, 1929 · 265 km E of this epicenter
- 7.2238 km SSE of Attu Station, AlaskaSeptember 8, 1939 · 247 km W of this epicenter
- 7.2238 km WSW of Adak, AlaskaMarch 22, 1905 · 115 km E of this epicenter
- 7.2162 km WSW of Adak, AlaskaMarch 16, 1957 · 187 km E of this epicenter
- 7.160 km SW of Adak, AlaskaMarch 12, 1957 · 299 km E of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 7 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700. The most severe:
- 1965M8.7
Aleutian Islands: Rat Islands
4 Feb 1965 · 22 km away · intensity VI
Under $1 million damagetsunami
- 1906M8.3
Aleutian Islands: Rat Islands
17 Aug 1906 · 86 km away
- 1905M7.9
Andreanof Islands
14 Feb 1905 · 211 km away
- 1909M7.8
Aleutian Islands
10 Apr 1909 · 261 km away
- 1916M7.7
Aleutian Islands
6 Feb 1916 · 289 km away
- 1965M7.6
Aleutian Islands: Rat Islands
30 Mar 1965 · 96 km away
tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.