QuakeScout
Magnitude5.9

Reviewed by USGSAlaska63y ago

M5.9 earthquake 169 km ESE of Chignik, Alaska

Thursday, February 6, 1964, 13:13:44 UTC · 55.613°N, 155.984°W

A magnitude 5.9 earthquake struck 169 km ESE of Chignik, Alaska on Thursday, February 6, 1964, 13:13:44 UTC, at a depth of 21.2 km (shallow). It is the strongest earthquake within 300 km since an M6.9 on February 6, 1964.

Magnitude
5.9
Moderate · mw
Depth
21 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 earthquake

In context

How big was it, and why here?

Energy released

12 kilotons of TNT

That is about the energy of the Hiroshima bomb. It released about 25 times the energy of a magnitude 5.0.

Tectonic setting

102 km

from the nearest mapped plate boundary, between the North American and Pacific plates. Earthquakes this far from a boundary happen on faults inside a plate, often less frequently but sometimes strongly.

Depth: shallow

21 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 has not published any M2.5+ earthquake within 75 km in the 30 days after this event.

Regional history

Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km

USGS lists 63 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:

  1. 8.21938 Semidi Islands, Alaska EarthquakeNovember 10, 1938 · 147 km W of this epicenter
  2. 7.454 km SE of Sand Point, AlaskaMay 31, 1917 · 256 km W of this epicenter
  3. 7.14 km ENE of Karluk, AlaskaNovember 7, 1912 · 241 km NE of this epicenter
  4. 7.0113 km ESE of Chignik, AlaskaMay 4, 1923 · 55 km NW of this epicenter
  5. 6.9105 km ESE of Perryville, AlaskaNovember 17, 1938 · 112 km W of this epicenter
  6. 6.9143 km ESE of Chignik, AlaskaFebruary 13, 1951 · 28 km NW of this epicenter
  7. 6.9171 km SW of Akhiok, AlaskaFebruary 6, 1964 · 15 km NE of this epicenter
  8. 6.8Event 48 Novarupta-Mount Katmai area, Alaska PeninsulaJune 10, 1912 · 299 km N of this epicenter

History · NOAA

Deadliest earthquakes in this area

NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 8 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700. The most severe:

  1. 1900M8.3

    Kodiak Island

    9 Oct 1900 · 225 km away · intensity VIII

    Limited damage (under $1M)

  2. 1788M8.0

    Unga Island

    21 Jul 1788 · 240 km away · intensity VII

    Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami

  3. 1792

    Kodiak Island

    1792 · 290 km away · intensity VII

    Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami

  4. 1938M8.2

    Alaska

    10 Nov 1938 · 151 km away · intensity VI

    tsunami

  5. 1906M7.6

    Aleutian Islands

    23 Dec 1906 · 188 km away

  6. 1912M7.5

    Alaska Peninsula

    7 Nov 1912 · 218 km away · intensity V

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

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