Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist
M 2.3ml
Earthquake near Valdez, AK
No earthquake was likely felt in Valdez in the 24 hours to 10:38 am AKST (19:38 UTC). The last one was M 4.4, 85 km (53 mi) NNW, at 11:11 am AKDT on 30 October 2026, estimated intensity II (weak) in town; 54 felt reports to USGS. Every earthquake near Valdez
This page: a magnitude 2.3 earthquake was recorded 41 km (26 mi) south-southwest of Valdez, AK, at 1:59 pm AKDT on 12 July 2018 (21:59 UTC), 20 km deep.
USGS: 6 km SW of Tatitlek, Alaska
- When
- 1:59 pm AKDT on 12 July 2018 ()
- Where
- 41 km (26 mi) south-southwest of Valdez, AK · earthquakes near Valdez
- Magnitude
- M 2.3 (ml)
- Depth
- 20 km below the surface
- Felt
- no reports yet
- Nearest
- Chugach Census Area, 48 km SE
- Status
- Reviewed by a seismologist
USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 1186 days ago
Earthquake alerts for Valdez, AK
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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 Valdez, 41 km away, the estimate is intensity II (weak). 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 85 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 3.3 would have released about 32 times as much.
- Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 180,000× the energy of this one
- Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 130,000× the energy of this one
- Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 11× the energy of this one
- This earthquake M 2.3 about 85 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 2017-06-22 — about 500 times the energy of this one.
Before 2016, the USGS record lists 11 earthquakes of M5 or more within 50 km; the five largest:
- 9.2 The 1964 Prince William Sound, Alaska Earthquake · 33 km WNW of this epicentre
- 6.7 Prince William Sound, Alaska · 22 km SW of this epicentre
- 6.6 37 km WNW of Tatitlek, Alaska · 37 km NW of this epicentre
- 6.4 Prince William Sound, Alaska · 49 km SSW of this epicentre
- 6.4 46 km WNW of Tatitlek, Alaska · 43 km WNW 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 60.8190, -146.7653. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chugach Census Area, AK | 48 km (30 mi) | SE | earthquakes near Chugach Census Area |
Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.
Aftershocks so far
55 earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.
- 1.8 33 km WNW of Tatitlek, Alaska
- 1.9 28 km WNW of Tatitlek, Alaska
- 1.6 Southern Alaska
- 1.8 9 km WSW of Tatitlek, Alaska
- 1.8 13 km SSE of Tatitlek, Alaska
- 1.6 39 km SW of Tatitlek, Alaska
- 1.7 14 km W of Tatitlek, Alaska
- 1.5 9 km WSW of Tatitlek, Alaska
- 3.1 10 km SW of Tatitlek, Alaska
- 1.6 44 km NW of Tatitlek, Alaska
- 1.6 23 km WSW of Tatitlek, Alaska
- 1.6 44 km WNW of Valdez, Alaska
- 1.5 33 km WNW of Valdez, Alaska
- 1.6 25 km WNW of Tatitlek, Alaska
- 3.1 24 km WNW of Tatitlek, 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.