M4.5 earthquake 187 km WSW of Adak, Alaska
A magnitude 4.5 earthquake struck 187 km WSW of Adak, Alaska on Sun, Dec 9, 1973, 6:08 PM GMT-11 (05:08 UTC), 33 km (21 mi) below the surface.
A larger quake followed: M5.2 130 km WSW of Adak, Alaska. This one was a foreshock.
Map
Where this earthquake was located, with the others nearby. Select one for its page.
The earthquake
- Magnitude
- 4.5 (mb), light
- Local time
- UTC
- 1973-12-10 05:08:09 UTC
- Depth
- 33.0 km (20.5 mi), shallow
- Epicenter
- 50.990° N, 178.924° W
- Region
- Alaska
- Tsunami flag
- No
- Status
- Reviewed by a seismologist
Did you feel it?
No one has reported feeling this quake to the USGS.
How well it is located
Reviewed by a seismologist.
- Depth from
- OPERATOR_ASSIGNED
- Stations used
- 13
Nearby
Within 100 km, magnitude 1.5 and up: 2 in the 60 days after this one and 1 in the 30 days before it.
After
- 5.2130 km WSW of Adak, Alaska · 19275 days ago · 54 km deep · 57 km away
- 5.8100 km WSW of Adak, Alaska · 19275 days ago · 53 km deep · 87 km away
Before
Earthquakes todayAlaska earthquakesLive radar here
Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp00004gg. Read Tue, Sep 22, 2026, 7:31 AM UTC.