Reviewed by USGSAlaska10y ago
M2.8 earthquake 102 km SSW of Nikolski, Alaska
Thursday, March 10, 2016, 21:39:06 UTC · 52.039°N, 169.187°W
A magnitude 2.8 earthquake struck 102 km SSW of Nikolski, Alaska on Thursday, March 10, 2016, 21:39:06 UTC, at a depth of 15.7 km (shallow).
- Magnitude
- 2.8
- Minor · ml
- Depth
- 16 km
- Shallow
- Felt reports
- 0
- Max intensity I
- 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
239 kg of TNT
That is about 1/63,000 of the Hiroshima bomb. A magnitude 5.0 releases about 1,995 times more energy.
Tectonic setting
36 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
16 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 41 M2.5+ earthquakes within 50 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M5.8 on March 27, 2016. Most nearby activity right after a large earthquake is aftershocks, which usually become less frequent over days and weeks.
- 2.5121 km SSW of Nikolski, Alaska10y ago · 20 km SW of this epicenter
- 2.788 km S of Nikolski, Alaska10y ago · 40 km E of this epicenter
- 4.990 km SSW of Nikolski, Alaska10y ago · 26 km NW of this epicenter
- 2.696 km S of Nikolski, Alaska10y ago · 33 km E of this epicenter
- 4.192 km SSW of Nikolski, Alaska10y ago · 20 km NW of this epicenter
- 3.9102 km SSW of Nikolski, Alaska10y ago · 24 km W of this epicenter
- 4.096 km SSW of Nikolski, Alaska10y ago · 17 km NW of this epicenter
- 4.396 km SSW of Nikolski, Alaska10y ago · 17 km NW of this epicenter
Regional history
Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km
USGS lists 650 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 7.8234 km SSW of Nikolski, AlaskaMarch 7, 1929 · 133 km S of this epicenter
- 7.881 km E of Nikolski, AlaskaJuly 2, 1965 · 150 km NE of this epicenter
- 7.4133 km WNW of Nikolski, AlaskaApril 18, 1916 · 185 km NW of this epicenter
- 7.3Fox Islands, Aleutian Islands, AlaskaJune 24, 2011 · 181 km W of this epicenter
- 7.139 km S of Akutan, AlaskaMarch 22, 1957 · 300 km NE of this epicenter
- 7.135 km SW of Nikolski, AlaskaMarch 11, 1957 · 72 km N of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 12 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700. The most severe:
- 1901M7.8
Aleutian Islands: Fox Islands
31 Dec 1901 · 142 km away
Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami
- 1965M6.5
Aleutian Islands: Fox Islands
2 Jul 1965 · 156 km away
Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami
- 1902M7.8
Aleutian Islands: Fox Islands
1 Jan 1902 · 122 km away
- 1907M7.8
Aleutian Islands
2 Sep 1907 · 72 km away
- 1929M7.8
Aleutian Islands: Fox Islands
7 Mar 1929 · 128 km away · intensity V
tsunami
- 1916M7.5
Aleutian Islands: Fox Islands
18 Apr 1916 · 151 km away
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.