QuakeIndex

Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist

M 3.1ml

Earthquake near Sterling, AK

No earthquake was likely felt in Sterling in the 24 hours to 1:23 pm AKST (22:23 UTC). The last one was M 2.5, 22 km (13 mi) NNE, at 9:11 pm AKST on 11 November 2026, estimated intensity II (weak) in town; 1 felt report to USGS. Every earthquake near Sterling

This page: a magnitude 3.1 earthquake was recorded 24 km (15 mi) north-northeast of Sterling, AK, at 11:00 pm AKDT on 21 May 2023 (07:00 UTC), 55 km deep. 2 people have reported feeling it to USGS.

USGS: 20 km SSE of Point Possession, Alaska

65 km (40 mi) SW of Anchorage, AK

11:00 pm AKDT, May 21, 2023 · · 55 km deep · released about 1,300 lb of TNT

Every earthquake near Sterling Felt it? Tell USGS Check my area
10 km30 km60 km120 km N Anchorage Municipality 86 kmKenai Peninsula Borough 103 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
11:00 pm AKDT on 21 May 2023 ()
Where
24 km (15 mi) north-northeast of Sterling, AK · earthquakes near Sterling
Magnitude
M 3.1 (ml)
Depth
55 km below the surface
Felt
2 reports · strongest reported intensity II
Measured shaking
intensity II (ShakeMap)
Nearest
Anchorage Municipality, 86 km NE
Status
Reviewed by a seismologist

USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 1203 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 Sterling, 24 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: Funny River.

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 4.8 on 2022-07-12 — about 350 times the energy of this one.

Before 2016, the USGS record lists 12 earthquakes of M5 or more within 50 km; the five largest:

  1. 6.8 Southern Alaska · 48 km NW of this epicentre
  2. 6.8 24 km ENE of Sterling, Alaska · 15 km SE of this epicentre
  3. 6.7 6 km WNW of Nikiski, Alaska · 43 km W of this epicentre
  4. 6.4 19 km SSE of Tyonek, Alaska · 30 km NW of this epicentre
  5. 5.7 19 km NNW of Nikiski, Alaska · 44 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 60.7411, -150.5969. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Nearby places

PlaceDistanceDirection from the epicentre
Anchorage Municipality, AK 86 km (53 mi) NE earthquakes near Anchorage Municipality
Kenai Peninsula Borough, AK 103 km (64 mi) WSW earthquakes near Kenai Peninsula Borough

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

Aftershocks so far

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

  1. 2.1 10 km SSE of Soldotna, Alaska
  2. 1.5 13 km N of Ridgeway, Alaska
  3. 1.9 5 km SW of Funny River, Alaska
  4. 1.6 26 km SSW of Anchorage, Alaska
  5. 1.7 14 km ESE of Beluga, Alaska
  6. 1.6 19 km SSE of Funny River, Alaska
  7. 1.7 Southern Alaska
  8. 2.1 Kenai Peninsula, Alaska
  9. 1.6 17 km NNE of Nikiski, Alaska
  10. 1.6 6 km W of Funny River, Alaska
  11. 1.5 Kenai Peninsula, Alaska
  12. 1.5 26 km WNW of Hope, Alaska
  13. 1.5 3 km ENE of Funny River, Alaska
  14. 1.6 13 km WNW of Point Possession, Alaska
  15. 2.2 29 km WSW of Hope, 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.