Reviewed by USGSAlaska5y ago
M2.6 earthquake 79 km ESE of Sand Point, Alaska
Wednesday, January 13, 2021, 12:33:09 UTC · 55.059°N, 159.350°W
A magnitude 2.6 earthquake struck 79 km ESE of Sand Point, Alaska on Wednesday, January 13, 2021, 12:33:09 UTC, at a depth of 6.0 km (shallow).
- Magnitude
- 2.6
- Minor · ml
- Depth
- 6 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
120 kg of TNT
That is about 1/125,702 of the Hiroshima bomb. A magnitude 5.0 releases about 3,981 times more energy.
Tectonic setting
127 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
6 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 24 M2.5+ earthquakes within 50 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M3.7 on February 1, 2021. Most nearby activity right after a large earthquake is aftershocks, which usually become less frequent over days and weeks.
- 3.181 km ESE of Sand Point, Alaska5y ago · 3 km E of this epicenter
- 2.752 km ESE of Sand Point, Alaska5y ago · 27 km NW of this epicenter
- 3.377 km S of Perryville, Alaska5y ago · 24 km NE of this epicenter
- 2.674 km SSE of Sand Point, Alaska5y ago · 47 km SW of this epicenter
- 3.7south of Alaska5y ago · 40 km SW of this epicenter
- 2.883 km ESE of Sand Point, Alaska5y ago · 5 km E of this epicenter
- 2.579 km SE of Sand Point, Alaska5y ago · 18 km SW of this epicenter
- 3.178 km ESE of Sand Point, Alaska5y ago · 11 km SW of this epicenter
Regional history
Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km
USGS lists 293 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 8.6The 1946 Unimak Island, Alaska EarthquakeApril 1, 1946 · 285 km SW of this epicenter
- 8.21938 Semidi Islands, Alaska EarthquakeNovember 10, 1938 · 76 km E of this epicenter
- 7.82020 Perryville, Alaska EarthquakeJuly 22, 2020 · 48 km E of this epicenter
- 7.62020 Sand Point, Alaska EarthquakeOctober 19, 2020 · 54 km S of this epicenter
- 7.454 km SE of Sand Point, AlaskaMay 31, 1917 · 35 km W of this epicenter
- 7.190 km SE of King Cove, AlaskaMay 14, 1948 · 127 km SW of this epicenter
- 7.0113 km ESE of Chignik, AlaskaMay 4, 1923 · 184 km NE of this epicenter
- 7.071 km SE of King Cove, AlaskaMay 30, 1991 · 155 km W of this epicenter
History · NOAA
Deadliest earthquakes in this area
NOAA’s significant-earthquake database lists 10 damaging, deadly or tsunami-generating earthquakes within 300 km of this epicenter since 1700, which together caused about 168 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1946M8.6
Unimak Island
1 Apr 1946 · 285 km away · intensity VI
168 deaths$26 million damagetsunami
- 2020M7.8
Alaska
22 Jul 2020 · 48 km away · intensity VII
Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami
- 1938M8.2
Alaska
10 Nov 1938 · 78 km away · intensity VI
tsunami
- 2021M8.2
Alaska Peninsula
29 Jul 2021 · 100 km away · intensity VIII
tsunami
- 1788M8.0
Alaska Peninsula
6 Aug 1788 · 105 km away
tsunami
- 2020M7.6
Alaska
19 Oct 2020 · 54 km away · intensity IX
tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.