Reviewed by USGSAlaska14y ago
M2.8 earthquake 34 km S of Atka, Alaska
Tuesday, April 17, 2012, 10:18:18 UTC · 51.887°N, 174.128°W
A magnitude 2.8 earthquake struck 34 km S of Atka, Alaska on Tuesday, April 17, 2012, 10:18:18 UTC, at a depth of 37.0 km (shallow).
- Magnitude
- 2.8
- Minor · ml
- Depth
- 37 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
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
108 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
37 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 4 M2.5+ earthquakes within 50 km in the following 30 days; the largest was M3.3 on April 28, 2012. 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 909 M5.0+ earthquakes within 300 km before this one (catalog from 1900; older records are less complete). The strongest:
- 8.61957 Atka, Alaska EarthquakeMarch 9, 1957 · 112 km W of this epicenter
- 8.01986 Atka, Alaska EarthquakeMay 7, 1986 · 60 km SW of this epicenter
- 7.977 km WSW of Adak, AlaskaJune 10, 1996 · 244 km W of this epicenter
- 7.65 km WNW of Adak, AlaskaFebruary 14, 1905 · 177 km W of this epicenter
- 7.4133 km WNW of Nikolski, AlaskaApril 18, 1916 · 290 km NE of this epicenter
- 7.388 km WSW of Adak, AlaskaJuly 7, 1929 · 253 km W of this epicenter
- 7.346 km SSW of Adak, AlaskaJune 10, 1996 · 193 km W of this epicenter
- 7.3Fox Islands, Aleutian Islands, AlaskaJune 24, 2011 · 158 km E 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 2 recorded deaths. The most severe:
- 1957M8.6
Alaska
9 Mar 1957 · 112 km away
2 deathsSevere damage ($5–24M)tsunami
- 1986M8.0
Aleutian Islands: Adak
7 May 1986 · 60 km away · intensity VI
Moderate damage ($1–5M)tsunami
- 1901M7.8
Aleutian Islands: Fox Islands
31 Dec 1901 · 220 km away
Limited damage (under $1M)tsunami
- 1996M7.9
Andreanof Islands
10 Jun 1996 · 244 km away · intensity VI
tsunami
- 1996M7.3
Andreanof Islands
10 Jun 1996 · 193 km away
tsunami
- 2011M7.3
Aleutian Islands: Fox Islands
24 Jun 2011 · 158 km away
tsunami
NOAA NCEI Global Significant Earthquake Database. Historical figures are estimates; older records are incomplete.