QuakeIndex

Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist

M 4.0mw

43 km WSW of Clear, Alaska, Alaska

Yes. A magnitude 4.0 earthquake was recorded 43 km WSW of Clear, Alaska, Alaska at 09:29 UTC on 2016-11-06, 23 km deep. 33 people have reported feeling it to USGS.

· 23 km deep · released about 15 tons of TNT

Felt it? Tell USGS Check my area
10 km30 km60 km120 km N Denali Borough 54 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
Magnitude
M 4.0 (mw)
Depth
23 km below the surface
Felt
33 reports · strongest reported intensity IV
Measured shaking
intensity II (ShakeMap)
USGS impact alert
green
Nearest
Denali Borough, 54 km S
Nearest mapped fault
Northern Foothills thrust fault (Northern Foothills fold and thrust belt), 11 km from its surface trace — near is not the same as on
Status
Reviewed by a seismologist

USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 1198 days ago

This was a light earthquake. It is usually felt clearly nearby and can rattle windows and dishes, but damage is uncommon.

At this magnitude and depth, people at rest would likely notice it out to about 94 km (58 mi) from the epicentre. 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 15 tons of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 5.0 would have released about 32 times as much.

  1. Northridge, California 1994 M 6.7 11,000× the energy of this one
  2. Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 500× the energy of this one
  3. Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 350× the energy of this one
  4. This earthquake M 4.0 about 15 tons of TNT
  5. Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 this one released 32× more

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

The largest earthquake within 50 km (31 mi) since our catalogue begins in 2016. No other earthquake of M4 or more has been recorded this close in that time.

Before 2016, the USGS record lists 3 earthquakes of M5 or more within 50 km:

  1. 5.8 52 km WSW of Ferry, Alaska · 36 km S of this epicentre
  2. 5.0 30 km W of Ferry, Alaska · 21 km SE of this epicentre
  3. 5.0 59 km WSW of Ferry, Alaska · 33 km SSW of this epicentre

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 64.1639, -150.0626. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Nearby places

PlaceDistanceDirection from the epicentre
Denali Borough, AK 54 km (33 mi) S earthquakes near Denali Borough

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

Aftershocks so far

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

  1. 1.5 29 km W of Anderson, Alaska
  2. 1.6 42 km WSW of Ferry, Alaska
  3. 1.8 32 km W of Ferry, Alaska
  4. 1.5 25 km W of Ferry, Alaska
  5. 2.5 37 km W of Anderson, Alaska
  6. 1.7 55 km W of Anderson, Alaska
  7. 1.5 39 km WSW of Clear, Alaska, Alaska
  8. 1.6 27 km W of Healy, Alaska
  9. 1.6 67 km WSW of Ferry, Alaska
  10. 1.6 41 km WNW of Anderson, Alaska
  11. 2.1 19 km WNW of Anderson, Alaska
  12. 2.6 28 km W of Healy, Alaska
  13. 1.5 55 km W of Ferry, Alaska
  14. 1.8 58 km WSW of Ferry, Alaska
  15. 2.5 28 km W of Anderson, 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.