Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist
M 1.6ml
Earthquake near Nikiski, AK
No earthquake was likely felt in Nikiski in the 24 hours to 1:55 pm AKST (22:55 UTC). The last one was M 4.3, 58 km (36 mi) SSE, at 2:30 am AKST on 1 November 2026, estimated intensity II (weak) in town; 115 felt reports to USGS. Every earthquake near Nikiski
This page: a magnitude 1.6 earthquake was recorded 27 km (17 mi) east-northeast of Nikiski, AK, at 10:54 am AKDT on 16 October 2017 (18:54 UTC), 15 km deep.
USGS: 15 km SW of Point Possession, Alaska
69 km (43 mi) SW of Anchorage, AK
- When
- 10:54 am AKDT on 16 October 2017 ()
- Where
- 27 km (17 mi) east-northeast of Nikiski, AK · earthquakes near Nikiski
- Magnitude
- M 1.6 (ml)
- Depth
- 15 km below the surface
- Felt
- no reports yet
- Nearest
- Kenai Peninsula Borough, 94 km WSW
- Status
- Reviewed by a seismologist
USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 1191 days ago
Earthquake alerts for Nikiski, AK
Get a notification in this browser when USGS records an earthquake near Nikiski, AK. No account or email needed.
Alerts are on for .
Not a warning. An alert comes after USGS publishes a quake, usually minutes after the shaking. For early warning use ShakeAlert, through your phone's Wireless Emergency Alerts or the MyShake app.
This was a minor earthquake. Quakes this small are rarely felt and do not cause damage.
At this magnitude and depth it was probably too small to be felt, even directly above it. In Nikiski, 27 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 7.6 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 2.6 would have released about 32 times as much.
- Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 2,000,000× the energy of this one
- Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 1,400,000× the energy of this one
- Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 130× the energy of this one
- This earthquake M 1.6 about 7.6 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
The largest earthquake within 50 km since 2016 was M 4.1 on 2017-09-04 — about 5,600 times the energy of this one.
Before 2016, the USGS record lists 14 earthquakes of M5 or more within 50 km; the five largest:
- 6.8 Southern Alaska · 33 km NNW of this epicentre
- 6.8 4 km NE of Beluga, Alaska · 39 km N of this epicentre
- 6.8 24 km ENE of Sterling, Alaska · 33 km SE of this epicentre
- 6.7 6 km WNW of Nikiski, Alaska · 30 km WSW of this epicentre
- 6.4 19 km SSE of Tyonek, Alaska · 12 km NW 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 60.8220, -150.8786. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kenai Peninsula Borough, AK | 94 km (58 mi) | WSW | earthquakes near Kenai Peninsula Borough |
| Anchorage Municipality, AK | 94 km (59 mi) | ENE | earthquakes near Anchorage Municipality |
Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.
Aftershocks so far
58 earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.
- 1.9 17 km E of Beluga, Alaska
- 1.8 12 km S of Tyonek, Alaska
- 1.5 19 km SW of Tyonek, Alaska
- 1.5 15 km SE of Funny River, Alaska
- 1.5 20 km SSW of Point Possession, Alaska
- 1.6 21 km ENE of Beluga, Alaska
- 1.5 14 km ESE of Point Possession, Alaska
- 2.1 14 km WNW of Tyonek, Alaska
- 1.5 13 km W of Tyonek, Alaska
- 1.8 18 km N of Nikiski, Alaska
- 2.1 10 km N of Sterling, Alaska
- 1.6 8 km SSE of Soldotna, Alaska
- 1.6 25 km NE of Point Possession, Alaska
- 2.5 13 km ESE of Nikiski, Alaska
- 1.5 7 km SSE of Soldotna, 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
- The official USGS event page — the source of record for every value above
- Did you feel it? Report it to USGS — reports go to USGS, not to us
- ShakeMap for this event, when USGS has produced one
QuakeIndex does not issue warnings. For earthquake early warning see ShakeAlert.