Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist
M 1.6ml
Earthquake near Anchorage, AK
No earthquake was likely felt in Anchorage in the 24 hours to 10:43 pm AKST (07:43 UTC). The last one was M 3.5, 39 km (24 mi) SSW, at 4:48 pm AKDT on 27 October 2026, estimated intensity II (weak) in town; 98 felt reports to USGS. Every earthquake near Anchorage
This page: a magnitude 1.6 earthquake was recorded 47 km (29 mi) southwest of Anchorage, AK, at 3:20 pm AKDT on 1 September 2020 (23:20 UTC), 10 km deep.
USGS: 15 km ESE of Point Possession, Alaska
47 km (29 mi) SW of Anchorage, AK
- When
- 3:20 pm AKDT on 1 September 2020 ()
- Where
- 47 km (29 mi) southwest of Anchorage, AK · earthquakes near Anchorage
- Magnitude
- M 1.6 (ml)
- Depth
- 10 km below the surface
- Felt
- no reports yet
- Nearest
- Anchorage Municipality, 69 km ENE
- Status
- Reviewed by a seismologist
USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 2249 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 minor earthquake. Quakes this small are rarely felt and do not cause damage.
At this magnitude and depth, people at rest would likely notice it out to about 5 km (3 mi) from the epicentre. In Anchorage, 47 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 4.8 on 2018-12-27 — about 63,000 times the energy of this one.
Before 2016, the USGS record lists 15 earthquakes of M5 or more within 50 km; the five largest:
- 6.8 Southern Alaska · 45 km WNW of this epicentre
- 6.8 4 km NE of Beluga, Alaska · 46 km NW of this epicentre
- 6.8 24 km ENE of Sterling, Alaska · 25 km S of this epicentre
- 6.4 19 km SSE of Tyonek, Alaska · 35 km W of this epicentre
- 5.8 20 km ENE of Beluga, Alaska · 45 km NNW 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 60.8743, -150.4144. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Anchorage Municipality, AK | 69 km (43 mi) | ENE | earthquakes near Anchorage Municipality |
| Kenai Peninsula Borough, AK | 118 km (74 mi) | WSW | earthquakes near Kenai Peninsula Borough |
Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.
Aftershocks so far
53 earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.
- 1.5 20 km WSW of Hope, Alaska
- 1.7 18 km E of Point Possession, Alaska
- 1.5 22 km SSE of Point Possession, Alaska
- 2.3 12 km NE of Ridgeway, Alaska
- 1.7 9 km WNW of Point Possession, Alaska
- 1.6 21 km NE of Point Possession, Alaska
- 1.6 2 km WNW of Funny River, Alaska
- 1.6 6 km SW of Anchorage, Alaska
- 1.6 22 km WNW of Cooper Landing, Alaska
- 2.0 27 km ENE of Beluga, Alaska
- 1.7 15 km SW of Point Possession, Alaska
- 1.5 22 km NNE of Point Possession, Alaska
- 1.5 24 km NNE of Point Possession, Alaska
- 2.9 23 km NNE of Point Possession, Alaska
- 1.6 10 km SE of Point Possession, AK
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.