Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist
M 2.2ml
Earthquake near Valdez, AK
No earthquake was likely felt in Valdez in the 24 hours to 12:20 pm AKST (21:20 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 2.2 earthquake was recorded 31 km (20 mi) north of Valdez, AK, at 5:59 am AKST on 16 December 2021 (14:59 UTC), 17 km deep.
USGS: 31 km N of Valdez, Alaska
- When
- 5:59 am AKST on 16 December 2021 ()
- Where
- 31 km (20 mi) north of Valdez, AK · earthquakes near Valdez
- Magnitude
- M 2.2 (ml)
- Depth
- 17 km below the surface
- Felt
- no reports yet
- Nearest
- Chugach Census Area, 103 km S
- Status
- Reviewed by a seismologist
USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 1785 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, people at rest would likely notice it out to about 8 km (5 mi) from the epicentre. In Valdez, 31 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 60 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 3.2 would have released about 32 times as much.
- Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 250,000× the energy of this one
- Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 180,000× the energy of this one
- Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 16× the energy of this one
- This earthquake M 2.2 about 60 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 4.3 on 2018-10-16 — about 1,400 times the energy of this one.
Before 2016, the USGS record lists 7 earthquakes of M5 or more within 50 km; the five largest:
- 6.0 Near Valdez, Alaska · 47 km S of this epicentre
- 5.5 47 km SSE of Glacier View, Alaska · 47 km W of this epicentre
- 5.5 48 km WNW of Valdez, Alaska · 38 km W of this epicentre
- 5.5 21 km NNW of Tatitlek, Alaska · 47 km SSW of this epicentre
- 5.3 49 km WNW of Valdez, Alaska · 41 km WSW 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 61.4116, -146.4125. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chugach Census Area, AK | 103 km (64 mi) | S | earthquakes near Chugach Census Area |
Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.
Aftershocks so far
60 earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.
- 2.2 25 km SE of Eureka Roadhouse, Alaska
- 1.6 44 km NW of Valdez, Alaska
- 1.8 12 km SSW of Valdez, Alaska
- 1.6 41 km NNW of Valdez, Alaska
- 1.6 44 km SSE of Nelchina, Alaska
- 1.8 43 km N of Valdez, Alaska
- 1.5 29 km SSE of Mendeltna, Alaska
- 2.0 18 km NE of Valdez, Alaska
- 1.6 27 km NW of Valdez, Alaska
- 1.7 35 km SSE of Nelchina, Alaska
- 1.5 34 km N of Valdez, Alaska
- 1.5 11 km NNW of Valdez, Alaska
- 1.7 30 km WNW of Valdez, Alaska
- 1.5 8 km N of Valdez, Alaska
- 1.6 45 km NNW of Valdez, 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.