Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist
M 2.6ml
2 km SW of Point MacKenzie, AK
Yes. A magnitude 2.6 earthquake was recorded 2 km SW of Point MacKenzie, AK, 16 km (10 mi) NNW of Anchorage, AK, at 3:35 am AKST on 12 February 2020 (12:35 UTC), 39 km deep. 1 person has reported feeling it to USGS.
16 km (10 mi) NNW of Anchorage, AK
- When
- Magnitude
- M 2.6 (ml)
- Depth
- 39 km below the surface
- Felt
- 1 report · strongest reported intensity II
- Nearest
- Anchorage Municipality, 43 km ESE
- Nearest mapped fault
- Castle Mountain fault, 24 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 2386 days ago
Earthquake alerts for Anchorage, AK
Get a notification in this browser when USGS records an earthquake near Anchorage, 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 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. 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.
Earthquakes near other towns within 30 km: Anchorage, Big Lake, Elmendorf Air Force Base, Eagle River, Knik-Fairview.
How big was it?
This earthquake released about 240 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 3.6 would have released about 32 times as much.
- Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 63,000× the energy of this one
- Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 45,000× the energy of this one
- Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 4× the energy of this one
- This earthquake M 2.6 about 240 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 in our catalogue was M 7.1 on 2018-11-30 — about 5,600,000 times the energy of this one.
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 61.3490, -150.0059. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Anchorage Municipality, AK | 43 km (27 mi) | ESE | earthquakes near Anchorage Municipality |
| Matanuska-Susitna Borough, AK | 105 km (65 mi) | NNE | earthquakes near Matanuska-Susitna Borough |
Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.
Aftershocks so far
59 earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.
- 1.6 8 km WSW of Knik, Alaska
- 1.6 7 km WSW of Houston, Alaska
- 1.6 29 km S of Susitna, Alaska
- 1.5 8 km SE of Anchorage, Alaska
- 2.3 Southern Alaska
- 1.8 12 km NW of Point MacKenzie, Alaska
- 1.8 3 km ESE of Willow, Alaska
- 1.8 17 km WSW of Willow, Alaska
- 1.6 6 km NNW of Susitna, Alaska
- 2.0 4 km W of Point MacKenzie, Alaska
- 1.5 12 km SW of Point MacKenzie, Alaska
- 2.5 Southern Alaska
- 2.1 21 km S of Susitna, Alaska
- 2.2 5 km NW of Point MacKenzie, Alaska
- 2.2 5 km WSW of Point MacKenzie, 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.