QuakeIndex

Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist

M 3.1ml

Earthquake near Nikiski, AK

No earthquake was likely felt in Nikiski in the 24 hours to 3:29 am AKST (12:29 UTC). The last one was M 4.3, 58 km (36 mi) SSE, at 2:30 am AKST on 1 November 2026, estimated intensity II (weak) in town; 115 felt reports to USGS. Every earthquake near Nikiski

This page: a magnitude 3.1 earthquake was recorded 31 km (19 mi) north of Nikiski, AK, at 8:05 pm AKST on 19 February 2022 (05:05 UTC), 65 km deep. 2 people have reported feeling it to USGS.

USGS: 18 km SW of Tyonek, Alaska

85 km (53 mi) WSW of Anchorage, AK

8:05 pm AKST, Feb 19, 2022 · · 65 km deep · released about 1,300 lb of TNT

Every earthquake near Nikiski Felt it? Tell USGS Check my area
10 km30 km60 km120 km N Kenai Peninsula Borough 84 kmAnchorage Municipality 116 km
Distance rings around the epicentre, with the nearest towns at their true direction and later quakes as coloured dots. Not a shaking map — see the USGS ShakeMap for that.
When
8:05 pm AKST on 19 February 2022 ()
Where
31 km (19 mi) north of Nikiski, AK · earthquakes near Nikiski
Magnitude
M 3.1 (ml)
Depth
65 km below the surface
Felt
2 reports · strongest reported intensity II
Nearest
Kenai Peninsula Borough, 84 km SW
Nearest mapped fault
Granite Point anticline (Cook Inlet folds), 3 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 1654 days ago

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. In Nikiski, 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 1,300 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 4.1 would have released about 32 times as much.

  1. Northridge, California 1994 M 6.7 250,000× the energy of this one
  2. Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 11,000× the energy of this one
  3. Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 7,900× the energy of this one
  4. This earthquake M 3.1 about 1,300 lb of TNT
  5. Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 this one released 1.4× more

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 5.2 on 2017-05-30 — about 1,400 times the energy of this one.

Before 2016, the USGS record lists 15 earthquakes of M5 or more within 50 km; the five largest:

  1. 6.8 Southern Alaska · 21 km NE of this epicentre
  2. 6.8 4 km NE of Beluga, Alaska · 31 km NE of this epicentre
  3. 6.7 6 km WNW of Nikiski, Alaska · 28 km S of this epicentre
  4. 6.4 19 km SSE of Tyonek, Alaska · 20 km ESE of this epicentre
  5. 6.0 Southern Alaska · 32 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 60.9664, -151.3985. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Nearby places

PlaceDistanceDirection from the epicentre
Kenai Peninsula Borough, AK 84 km (52 mi) SW earthquakes near Kenai Peninsula Borough
Anchorage Municipality, AK 116 km (72 mi) ENE earthquakes near Anchorage Municipality

Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.

Aftershocks so far

57 earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.

  1. 1.8 23 km WNW of Beluga, Alaska
  2. 1.8 12 km NW of Nikiski, Alaska
  3. 1.6 15 km WSW of Salamatof, Alaska
  4. 1.7 19 km W of Salamatof, Alaska
  5. 1.7 35 km NW of Nikiski, Alaska
  6. 1.5 13 km NW of Sterling, Alaska
  7. 1.6 4 km SE of Beluga, Alaska
  8. 1.6 7 km NW of Beluga, Alaska
  9. 1.6 22 km NNW of Beluga, Alaska
  10. 1.5 30 km W of Nikiski, Alaska
  11. 1.5 3 km ENE of Tyonek, Alaska
  12. 2.0 28 km WNW of Beluga, Alaska
  13. 1.7 14 km WSW of Tyonek, Alaska
  14. 1.9 40 km WNW of Beluga, Alaska
  15. 1.6 32 km WNW of Beluga, 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

QuakeIndex does not issue warnings. For earthquake early warning see ShakeAlert.