Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist
M 2.2ml
Earthquake near Willow, AK
No earthquake was likely felt in Willow in the 24 hours to 1:27 am AKST (10:27 UTC). The last one was M 2.8, 20 km (12 mi) S, at 6:17 am AKST on 6 November 2026, estimated intensity II (weak) in town; 3 felt reports to USGS. Every earthquake near Willow
This page: a magnitude 2.2 earthquake was recorded 15 km (9 mi) north of Willow, AK, at 9:38 am AKDT on 23 March 2023 (17:38 UTC), 7.1 km deep.
USGS: 15 km N of Willow, Alaska
74 km (46 mi) N of Anchorage, AK
- When
- 9:38 am AKDT on 23 March 2023 ()
- Where
- 15 km (9 mi) north of Willow, AK · earthquakes near Willow
- Magnitude
- M 2.2 (ml)
- Depth
- 7.1 km below the surface
- Felt
- no reports yet
- Nearest
- Matanuska-Susitna Borough, 50 km NNE
- Status
- Reviewed by a seismologist
USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 1324 days ago
Earthquake alerts for Willow, AK
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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, people at rest would likely notice it out to about 17 km (11 mi) from the epicentre. In Willow, 15 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.
Likely felt in: Willow 15 km, intensity II. Estimated for each town centre; each link is that town's own record.
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 5.2 on 2018-11-30 — about 32,000 times the energy of this one.
Before 2016, the USGS record lists 14 earthquakes of M5 or more within 50 km; the five largest:
- 5.9 23 km NE of Willow, Alaska · 14 km ENE of this epicentre
- 5.8 14 km NNE of Fishhook, Alaska · 47 km E of this epicentre
- 5.6 11 km NW of Big Lake, Alaska · 34 km SSW of this epicentre
- 5.6 5 km N of Susitna, Alaska · 42 km SW of this epicentre
- 5.5 9 km E of Susitna, Alaska · 42 km SSW 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 61.8817, -149.9924. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Matanuska-Susitna Borough, AK | 50 km (31 mi) | NNE | earthquakes near Matanuska-Susitna Borough |
| Anchorage Municipality, AK | 87 km (54 mi) | SSE | earthquakes near Anchorage Municipality |
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.
- 1.6 13 km S of Susitna North, Alaska
- 2.5 7 km N of Houston, Alaska
- 1.6 14 km NW of Fishhook, Alaska
- 1.7 14 km SSW of Susitna North, Alaska
- 1.8 15 km N of Meadow Lakes, Alaska
- 1.5 14 km WSW of Big Lake, Alaska
- 1.5 14 km W of Big Lake, Alaska
- 1.6 29 km SW of Susitna North, Alaska
- 1.5 Southern Alaska
- 1.8 Southern Alaska
- 1.6 3 km SE of Big Lake, Alaska
- 1.9 6 km SSW of Meadow Lakes, Alaska
- 1.5 14 km NW of Willow, Alaska
- 1.7 10 km NW of Susitna North, Alaska
- 2.0 13 km NE of Susitna North, 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.