QuakeIndex

Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist

M 1.8ml

Earthquake near Bear Creek, AK

No earthquake was likely felt in Bear Creek in the 24 hours to 3:13 am AKST (12:13 UTC). The last one was M 4.3, 85 km (53 mi) W, at 2:30 am AKST on 1 November 2026, estimated intensity II (weak) in town; 115 felt reports to USGS. Every earthquake near Bear Creek

This page: a magnitude 1.8 earthquake was recorded 48 km (30 mi) east of Bear Creek, AK, at 4:33 am AKDT on 15 September 2024 (12:33 UTC), 12 km deep.

USGS: 29 km W of Chenega, Alaska

4:33 am AKDT, Sep 15, 2024 · · 12 km deep · released about 15 lb of TNT

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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
4:33 am AKDT on 15 September 2024 ()
Where
48 km (30 mi) east of Bear Creek, AK · earthquakes near Bear Creek
Magnitude
M 1.8 (ml)
Depth
12 km below the surface
Felt
no reports yet
Status
Reviewed by a seismologist

USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 750 days ago

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 6 km (4 mi) from the epicentre. In Bear Creek, 48 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.

How big was it?

This earthquake released about 15 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 2.8 would have released about 32 times as much.

  1. Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 1,000,000× the energy of this one
  2. Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 710,000× the energy of this one
  3. Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 63× the energy of this one
  4. This earthquake M 1.8 about 15 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 4.4 on 2022-07-12 — about 7,900 times the energy of this one.

Before 2016, the USGS record lists 11 earthquakes of M5 or more within 50 km; the five largest:

  1. 6.1 25 km WSW of Chenega, Alaska · 13 km SSE of this epicentre
  2. 6.0 54 km SE of Lowell Point, Alaska · 49 km SSW of this epicentre
  3. 5.9 33 km SSE of Lowell Point, Alaska · 49 km SW of this epicentre
  4. 5.8 29 km NW of Chenega, Alaska · 19 km NNE of this epicentre
  5. 5.8 33 km ESE of Bear Creek, Alaska · 15 km W 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 60.0933, -148.5334. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Aftershocks so far

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

  1. 1.8 38 km N of Chenega, Alaska
  2. 1.5 26 km W of Chenega, Alaska
  3. 1.5 29 km E of Moose Pass, Alaska
  4. 2.0 31 km SW of Chenega, Alaska
  5. 1.8 35 km NW of Chenega, Alaska
  6. 2.1 2 km N of Chenega, Alaska
  7. 1.6 30 km SSW of Chenega, Alaska
  8. 1.6 43 km NW of Chenega, Alaska
  9. 1.6 28 km NW of Chenega, Alaska
  10. 1.5 34 km NW of Chenega, Alaska
  11. 2.4 44 km SE of Whittier, Alaska
  12. 1.7 17 km SSW of Chenega, Alaska
  13. 1.6 32 km NW of Chenega, Alaska
  14. 1.5 34 km NW of Chenega, Alaska
  15. 1.9 15 km S of Chenega, 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.