QuakeIndex

Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist

M 3.0ml

Earthquake near King Cove, AK

No earthquake was likely felt in King Cove in the 24 hours to 11:12 am AKST (20:12 UTC). The last one was M 5.0, 171 km (106 mi) SSW, at 12:14 pm AKDT on 29 October 2026, estimated intensity II (weak) in town. Every earthquake near King Cove

This page: a magnitude 3.0 earthquake was recorded 44 km (28 mi) north-northwest of King Cove, AK, at 2:16 pm AKDT on 17 August 2018 (22:16 UTC), 164 km deep.

USGS: 23 km N of Cold Bay, Alaska

2:16 pm AKDT, Aug 17, 2018 · · 164 km deep · released about 950 lb of TNT

Every earthquake near King Cove Felt it? Tell USGS Check my area
10 km30 km60 km120 km N Aleutians East Borough 48 km
Distance rings around the epicentre, with the nearest towns at their true direction and later quakes as coloured dots. Not a shaking map — see the USGS ShakeMap for that.
When
2:16 pm AKDT on 17 August 2018 ()
Where
44 km (28 mi) north-northwest of King Cove, AK · earthquakes near King Cove
Magnitude
M 3.0 (ml)
Depth
164 km below the surface
Felt
no reports yet
Nearest
Aleutians East Borough, 48 km ESE
Status
Reviewed by a seismologist

USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 2090 days ago

This was a small earthquake. Shaking like this is often felt indoors nearby and very rarely causes damage.

At this magnitude and depth it was probably too small to be felt, even directly above it. In King Cove, 44 km away, the estimate is intensity I (not felt). Estimated from magnitude, depth and distance with the intensity equation USGS Did You Feel It? uses; felt reports, where there are any, are the measurement.

How big was it?

This earthquake released about 950 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 4.0 would have released about 32 times as much.

  1. Northridge, California 1994 M 6.7 350,000× the energy of this one
  2. Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 16,000× the energy of this one
  3. Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 11,000× the energy of this one
  4. This earthquake M 3.0 about 950 lb of TNT

Energy from the Gutenberg–Richter relation (log10E = 1.5M + 4.8), rounded to two figures; bar length is magnitude, which is already a logarithm of energy. Magnitudes of past earthquakes from the USGS catalogue.

For this area

No earthquake of M4 or more has been recorded within 50 km since our catalogue begins in 2016.

Before 2016, the USGS record since 1900 lists no earthquake of M5 or more within 50 km.

Since 2016: the QuakeIndex catalogue (US, M1.5+), built from the USGS FDSN event service. Before 2016: USGS ComCat, M5+ from 1900. Distances are between epicentres. This is the record, not a forecast.

Where

Epicentre 55.3949, -162.7029. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Nearby places

PlaceDistanceDirection from the epicentre
Aleutians East Borough, AK 48 km (30 mi) ESE earthquakes near Aleutians East Borough

Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.

Aftershocks so far

56 earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.

  1. 2.1 12 km NNW of King Cove, Alaska
  2. 2.2 15 km SSW of Cold Bay, Alaska
  3. 1.6 11 km N of King Cove, Alaska
  4. 3.3 21 km ENE of Cold Bay, Alaska
  5. 1.9 25 km N of King Cove, Alaska
  6. 1.7 20 km S of Cold Bay, Alaska
  7. 1.9 26 km N of King Cove, Alaska
  8. 1.8 22 km WSW of Cold Bay, Alaska
  9. 2.0 36 km NW of Cold Bay, Alaska
  10. 1.8 17 km SSW of Cold Bay, Alaska
  11. 1.7 20 km W of Cold Bay, Alaska
  12. 1.5 9 km E of Cold Bay, Alaska
  13. 2.0 20 km ENE of Cold Bay, Alaska
  14. 2.2 20 km W of Cold Bay, Alaska
  15. 3.5 41 km NNE of Cold Bay, Alaska

Counted from the QuakeIndex database, which ingests the USGS feed every 30 seconds · as of . QuakeIndex does not forecast aftershocks. When USGS issues an operational aftershock forecast it appears on the USGS event page.

On USGS

QuakeIndex does not issue warnings. For earthquake early warning see ShakeAlert.