Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist
M 1.7ml
Earthquake near Anchorage, AK
No earthquake was likely felt in Anchorage in the 24 hours to 8:25 am AKST (17:25 UTC). The last one was M 3.5, 39 km (24 mi) SSW, at 4:48 pm AKDT on 27 October 2026, estimated intensity II (weak) in town; 98 felt reports to USGS. Every earthquake near Anchorage
This page: a magnitude 1.7 earthquake was recorded 39 km (24 mi) south-southeast of Anchorage, AK, at 9:25 am AKST on 19 December 2023 (18:25 UTC), 26 km deep.
USGS: 5 km ESE of Hope, Alaska
39 km (24 mi) SSE of Anchorage, AK
- When
- 9:25 am AKST on 19 December 2023 ()
- Where
- 39 km (24 mi) south-southeast of Anchorage, AK · earthquakes near Anchorage
- Magnitude
- M 1.7 (ml)
- Depth
- 26 km below the surface
- Felt
- no reports yet
- Nearest
- Anchorage Municipality, 33 km NNE
- Status
- Reviewed by a seismologist
USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 1043 days ago
Earthquake alerts for Anchorage, 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 it was probably too small to be felt, even directly above it. In Anchorage, 39 km away, the estimate is intensity I (not felt). 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: Girdwood.
How big was it?
This earthquake released about 11 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 2.7 would have released about 32 times as much.
- Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 1,400,000× the energy of this one
- Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 1,000,000× the energy of this one
- Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 89× the energy of this one
- This earthquake M 1.7 about 11 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 5.8 on 2018-11-30 — about 1,400,000 times the energy of this one.
Before 2016, the USGS record lists 11 earthquakes of M5 or more within 50 km; the five largest:
- 6.0 21 km N of Whittier, Alaska · 47 km E of this epicentre
- 5.7 13 km S of Girdwood, Alaska · 22 km ESE of this epicentre
- 5.6 17 km W of Whittier, Alaska · 34 km ESE of this epicentre
- 5.5 2 km ENE of Eagle River, Alaska · 47 km N of this epicentre
- 5.5 26 km SSW of Anchorage, Alaska · 33 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 60.9077, -149.5480. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Anchorage Municipality, AK | 33 km (20 mi) | NNE | earthquakes near Anchorage Municipality |
Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.
Aftershocks so far
54 earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.
- 2.4 2 km WSW of Hope, Alaska
- 1.7 7 km SSE of Anchorage, Alaska
- 1.5 7 km SSE of Anchorage, Alaska
- 1.7 10 km ENE of Cooper Landing, Alaska
- 1.5 22 km NW of Cooper Landing, Alaska
- 1.6 30 km SW of Hope, Alaska
- 1.5 21 km ESE of Eagle River, Alaska
- 1.5 7 km NNW of Hope, Alaska
- 1.6 20 km NNW of Girdwood, Alaska
- 1.8 5 km E of Cooper Landing, Alaska
- 1.8 15 km SSE of Girdwood, Alaska
- 1.7 18 km WSW of Hope, Alaska
- 1.6 16 km ENE of Moose Pass, Alaska
- 1.7 24 km N of Cooper Landing, Alaska
- 1.8 20 km N of Cooper Landing, 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.