M4.5 earthquake 296 km WSW of Adak, Alaska
A magnitude 4.5 earthquake struck 296 km WSW of Adak, Alaska on Wed, Dec 26, 1979, 8:18 PM GMT+12 (08:18 UTC), 53 km (33 mi) below the surface.
A larger quake followed: M4.9 217 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
- 1979-12-26 08:18:41 UTC
- Depth
- 53.0 km (32.9 mi), shallow
- Epicenter
- 51.023° N, 179.330° E
- 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.
- Stations used
- 28
Nearby
Within 100 km, magnitude 1.5 and up: 5 in the 60 days after this one and 1 in the 30 days before it.
After
- 4.4292 km WSW of Adak, Alaska · 17071 days ago · 33 km deep · 13 km away
- 4.9217 km WSW of Adak, Alaska · 17058 days ago · 33 km deep · 79 km away
- 4.9216 km WSW of Adak, Alaska · 17051 days ago · 50 km deep · 79 km away
- 4.7Rat Islands, Aleutian Islands, Alaska · 17027 days ago · 33 km deep · 100 km away
- 4.7Rat Islands, Aleutian Islands, Alaska · 17012 days ago · 45 km deep · 69 km away
Before
Earthquakes todayAlaska earthquakesLive radar here
Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp00014q9. Read Tue, Sep 22, 2026, 11:01 AM UTC.