Earthquake · automatic estimate, may change
M 2.0ml
Earthquake near Nikiski, AK
USGS: 18 km WSW of Point Possession, Alaska
72 km (45 mi) SW of Anchorage, AK
- When
- 10:51 pm AKDT on 27 September 2026 ()
- Where
- 23 km (14 mi) NE of Nikiski, AK · earthquakes near Nikiski
- Magnitude
- M 2.0 (ml)
- Depth
- 11 km below the surface
- Felt
- 1 report · strongest reported intensity I
- Nearest
- Kenai Peninsula Borough, 90 km SW
- Nearest mapped fault
- Granite Point anticline (Cook Inlet folds), 23 km from its surface trace — near is not the same as on
- Status
- Automatic — a machine’s first estimate, which may change
USGS · last changed by USGS · we first saw it 5 days ago
A magnitude 2.0 earthquake was recorded 23 km (14 mi) NE of Nikiski, AK, at 10:51 pm AKDT on 27 September 2026 (06:51 UTC). 1 person has reported feeling it to USGS. This was a minor earthquake. Quakes this small are rarely felt and do not cause damage.
How big was it?
This earthquake released about 30 lb of TNT. Magnitude is logarithmic: each whole step up releases about 32 times more energy, so a magnitude 3.0 would have released about 32 times as much.
- Mineral, Virginia 2011 M 5.8 500,000× the energy of this one
- Magna, Utah 2020 M 5.7 350,000× the energy of this one
- Around the size people start to feel M 3.0 32× the energy of this one
- This earthquake M 2.0 about 30 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 4.8 on 2022-07-12 — about 16,000 times the energy of this one.
Before 2016, the USGS record lists 14 earthquakes of M5 or more within 50 km; the five largest:
- 6.8 Southern Alaska · 30 km NNW of this epicentre
- 6.8 4 km NE of Beluga, Alaska · 37 km N of this epicentre
- 6.8 24 km ENE of Sterling, Alaska · 38 km ESE of this epicentre
- 6.7 6 km WNW of Nikiski, Alaska · 26 km WSW of this epicentre
- 6.4 19 km SSE of Tyonek, Alaska · 8 km NNW 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 60.8350, -150.9850. Map © OpenStreetMap contributors.
Nearby places
| Place | Distance | Direction from the epicentre | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kenai Peninsula Borough, AK | 90 km (56 mi) | SW | earthquakes near Kenai Peninsula Borough |
| Anchorage Municipality, AK | 99 km (62 mi) | ENE | earthquakes near Anchorage Municipality |
Places and coordinates from the US Census Bureau Gazetteer (2024). Distances are from the epicentre.
Aftershocks so far
4 earthquakes have been recorded within 50 km since this one.
- 1.8 11 km SE of Tyonek, Alaska
- 2.4 24 km ENE of Beluga, Alaska
- 1.9 20 km WSW of Tyonek, Alaska
- 1.8 11 km SE of Soldotna, 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.
Revisions
USGS refines a solution as more stations report. Every change we have seen is listed here.
| What changed | From | To | When |
|---|---|---|---|
| reported intensity | not reported | 1 | |
| felt reports | not reported | 1 | |
| longitude | -150.99 | -150.99 | |
| latitude | 60.84 | 60.84 | |
| depth | 12.7 | 11.4 | |
| magnitude | 1.8 | 2 |
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.