QuakeIndex

Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist

M 2.6ml

Earthquake near Meadow Lakes, AK

No earthquake was likely felt in Meadow Lakes in the 24 hours to 2:50 pm AKST (23:50 UTC). The last one was M 2.8, 23 km (14 mi) WSW, at 6:17 am AKST on 6 November 2026, estimated intensity II (weak) in town; 3 felt reports to USGS. Every earthquake near Meadow Lakes

This page: a magnitude 2.6 earthquake was recorded 49 km (31 mi) west of Meadow Lakes, AK, at 4:15 am AKST on 14 December 2022 (13:15 UTC), 47 km deep. 1 person has reported feeling it to USGS.

USGS: 9 km N of Susitna, Alaska

57 km (35 mi) NW of Anchorage, AK

4:15 am AKST, Dec 14, 2022 · · 47 km deep · released about 240 lb of TNT

Every earthquake near Meadow Lakes Felt it? Tell USGS Check my area
10 km30 km60 km120 km N Anchorage Municipality 84 kmMatanuska-Susitna Borough 89 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
4:15 am AKST on 14 December 2022 ()
Where
49 km (31 mi) west of Meadow Lakes, AK · earthquakes near Meadow Lakes
Magnitude
M 2.6 (ml)
Depth
47 km below the surface
Felt
1 report · strongest reported intensity II
Nearest
Anchorage Municipality, 84 km SE
Nearest mapped fault
Castle Mountain fault, 16 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 1364 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 Meadow Lakes, 49 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.

Earthquakes near other towns within 30 km: Willow.

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.

  1. Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 63,000× the energy of this one
  2. Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 45,000× the energy of this one
  3. Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 4× the energy of this one
  4. 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 since 2016 was M 5.2 on 2019-09-17 — about 7,900 times the energy of this one.

Before 2016, the USGS record lists 27 earthquakes of M5 or more within 50 km; the five largest:

  1. 6.9 27 km SE of Skwentna, Alaska · 33 km NW of this epicentre
  2. 5.8 27 km N of Beluga, Alaska · 37 km SW of this epicentre
  3. 5.8 20 km ENE of Beluga, Alaska · 45 km SSW of this epicentre
  4. 5.7 19 km E of Skwentna, Alaska · 47 km NNW of this epicentre
  5. 5.6 11 km NW of Big Lake, Alaska · 22 km ESE 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 61.6269, -150.5373. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Nearby places

PlaceDistanceDirection from the epicentre
Anchorage Municipality, AK 84 km (52 mi) SE earthquakes near Anchorage Municipality
Matanuska-Susitna Borough, AK 89 km (55 mi) NE 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. 1.6 19 km WSW of Susitna, Alaska
  2. 1.8 Southern Alaska
  3. 1.5 29 km ESE of Skwentna, Alaska
  4. 1.8 3 km NW of Big Lake, Alaska
  5. 1.7 5 km ENE of Susitna, Alaska
  6. 2.2 21 km E of Skwentna, Alaska
  7. 1.7 37 km NW of Willow, Alaska
  8. 2.2 23 km ESE of Skwentna, Alaska
  9. 1.8 26 km NE of Beluga, Alaska
  10. 1.8 20 km S of Susitna, Alaska
  11. 1.5 Southern Alaska
  12. 3.0 Southern Alaska
  13. 1.8 21 km WNW of Susitna, Alaska
  14. 1.5 12 km W of Susitna, Alaska
  15. 3.2 10 km W 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

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