Reviewed by USGSAlaska4y ago
M2.5 earthquake in Fox Islands, Aleutian Islands, Alaska
Friday, February 25, 2022, 10:49:28 UTC · 53.137°N, 166.802°W
A magnitude 2.5 earthquake struck in Fox Islands, Aleutian Islands, Alaska on Friday, February 25, 2022, 10:49:28 UTC, at a depth of 28.0 km (shallow).
- Magnitude
- 2.5
- Minor · ml
- Depth
- 28 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
85 kg of TNT
That is about 1/177,558 of the Hiroshima bomb. A magnitude 5.0 releases about 5,623 times more energy.
Tectonic setting
88 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
28 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 11 M2.5+ earthquakes within 50 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M4.5 on February 28, 2022. Most nearby activity right after a large earthquake is aftershocks, which usually become less frequent over days and weeks.
- 3.181 km SSW of Unalaska, Alaska4y ago · 5 km NW of this epicenter
- 4.172 km SSW of Unalaska, Alaska4y ago · 15 km NW of this epicenter
- 2.885 km SSW of Unalaska, Alaska4y ago · 2 km S of this epicenter
- 3.357 km SSW of Unalaska, Alaska4y ago · 32 km N of this epicenter
- 3.457 km SSW of Unalaska, Alaska4y ago · 32 km N of this epicenter
- 3.078 km S of Unalaska, Alaska4y ago · 13 km E of this epicenter
- 4.5108 km SSW of Unalaska, Alaska4y ago · 24 km S of this epicenter
- 3.179 km S of Unalaska, Alaska4y ago · 5 km NE of this epicenter
Regional history
Past M5+ earthquakes within 300 km
USGS lists 663 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 · 267 km E of this epicenter
- 7.881 km E of Nikolski, AlaskaJuly 2, 1965 · 59 km W of this epicenter
- 7.4133 km WNW of Nikolski, AlaskaApril 18, 1916 · 259 km W of this epicenter
- 7.139 km S of Akutan, AlaskaMarch 22, 1957 · 99 km NE of this epicenter
- 7.135 km SW of Nikolski, AlaskaMarch 11, 1957 · 168 km W of this epicenter
- 7.0203 km SSE of Unalaska, AlaskaAugust 22, 1940 · 140 km SE of this epicenter
- 6.980 km SW of Nikolski, AlaskaMarch 9, 1957 · 204 km SW 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, which together caused about 168 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1946M8.6
Unimak Island
1 Apr 1946 · 267 km away · intensity VI
168 deaths$26 million damagetsunami
- 1965M6.5
Aleutian Islands: Fox Islands
2 Jul 1965 · 51 km away
Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami
- 1917M7.9
Alaska Peninsula
31 May 1917 · 238 km away · intensity V
- 1902M7.8
Aleutian Islands: Fox Islands
1 Jan 1902 · 94 km away
- 1907M7.8
Aleutian Islands
2 Sep 1907 · 206 km away
- 1916M7.5
Aleutian Islands: Fox Islands
18 Apr 1916 · 214 km away
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.