Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist
M 1.6ml
Earthquake near Palmer, AK
No earthquake was likely felt in Palmer in the 24 hours to 9:57 pm AKST (06:57 UTC). The last one was M 4.4, 114 km (71 mi) ENE, at 11:11 am AKDT on 30 October 2026, estimated intensity II (weak) in town; 54 felt reports to USGS. Every earthquake near Palmer
This page: a magnitude 1.6 earthquake was recorded 49 km (30 mi) south-southeast of Palmer, AK, at 3:16 pm AKDT on 24 July 2021 (23:16 UTC), 20 km deep.
USGS: Southern Alaska
67 km (42 mi) E of Anchorage, AK
- When
- 3:16 pm AKDT on 24 July 2021 ()
- Where
- 49 km (30 mi) south-southeast of Palmer, AK · earthquakes near Palmer
- Magnitude
- M 1.6 (ml)
- Depth
- 20 km below the surface
- Felt
- no reports yet
- Nearest
- Anchorage Municipality, 34 km W
- Status
- Reviewed by a seismologist
USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 1848 days ago
Earthquake alerts for Palmer, AK
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Alerts are on for .
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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 Palmer, 49 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 4.2 on 2020-06-18 — about 7,900 times the energy of this one.
Before 2016, the USGS record lists 8 earthquakes of M5 or more within 50 km; the five largest:
- 6.4 22 km ENE of Whittier, Alaska · 44 km SSE of this epicentre
- 6.3 27 km ENE of Whittier, Alaska · 43 km SSE of this epicentre
- 6.0 21 km N of Whittier, Alaska · 28 km S of this epicentre
- 5.7 67 km S of Glacier View, Alaska · 49 km E of this epicentre
- 5.5 2 km ENE of Eagle River, Alaska · 48 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 61.2201, -148.6505. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Anchorage Municipality, AK | 34 km (21 mi) | W | earthquakes near Anchorage Municipality |
| Matanuska-Susitna Borough, AK | 125 km (77 mi) | NNW | earthquakes near Matanuska-Susitna Borough |
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.
- 1.5 4 km NE of Girdwood, Alaska
- 1.9 19 km ENE of Knik River, Alaska
- 1.9 12 km E of Lazy Mountain, Alaska
- 1.5 36 km NNE of Whittier, Alaska
- 1.7 35 km NNE of Whittier, Alaska
- 1.7 16 km NE of Whittier, Alaska
- 1.5 34 km NNE of Whittier, Alaska
- 1.6 25 km SSE of Chickaloon, Alaska
- 2.6 9 km NE of Girdwood, Alaska
- 3.9 8 km NE of Girdwood, Alaska
- 1.9 41 km NE of Whittier, Alaska
- 1.7 33 km SE of Knik River, Alaska
- 2.2 34 km SSE of Knik River, Alaska
- 1.8 26 km SSE of Chickaloon, Alaska
- 1.9 5 km S of Girdwood, 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.