QuakeIndex

Earthquake · reviewed by a seismologist

M 1.6ml

18 km ENE of Chitina, Alaska

Yes. A magnitude 1.6 earthquake was recorded 18 km ENE of Chitina, Alaska, at 1:56 pm AKST on 9 January 2026 (22:56 UTC), 58 km deep.

· 58 km deep · released about 7.6 lb of TNT

Felt it? Tell USGS Check my area
10 km30 km60 km120 km N Copper River Census Area 53 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
Magnitude
M 1.6 (ml)
Depth
58 km below the surface
Felt
no reports yet
Nearest
Copper River Census Area, 53 km N
Status
Reviewed by a seismologist

USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 93 days ago

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. 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 7.6 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 2.6 would have released about 32 times as much.

  1. Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 2,000,000× the energy of this one
  2. Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 1,400,000× the energy of this one
  3. Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 130× the energy of this one
  4. This earthquake M 1.6 about 7.6 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

No earthquake of M4 or more has been recorded within 50 km since our catalogue begins in 2016.

Before 2016, the USGS record since 1900 lists no earthquake of M5 or more within 50 km.

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 61.5630, -144.1010. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Nearby places

PlaceDistanceDirection from the epicentre
Copper River Census Area, AK 53 km (33 mi) N earthquakes near Copper River Census Area
Chugach Census Area, AK 165 km (102 mi) SW earthquakes near Chugach Census Area

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

Aftershocks so far

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

  1. -0.0 54 km ENE of Kenny Lake, Alaska
  2. 1.8 57 km NNE of Chitina, Alaska
  3. 1.8 51 km NNE of Chitina, Alaska
  4. 1.2 50 km NNE of Chitina, Alaska
  5. 0.1 54 km NE of Kenny Lake, Alaska
  6. 1.4 49 km NE of Kenny Lake, Alaska
  7. 0.4 50 km NNE of Chitina, Alaska
  8. -0.5 55 km NNE of Chitina, Alaska
  9. -0.2 49 km NNE of Chitina, Alaska
  10. -0.6 48 km NE of Kenny Lake, Alaska
  11. -0.6 48 km NE of Kenny Lake, Alaska
  12. 0.8 50 km NE of Kenny Lake, Alaska
  13. 1.5 48 km NE of Kenny Lake, Alaska
  14. 2.0 56 km ENE of Kenny Lake, Alaska
  15. 1.6 56 km ENE of Kenny Lake, 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.