M4.8 earthquake 280 km WSW of Adak, Alaska
A magnitude 4.8 earthquake struck 280 km WSW of Adak, Alaska on Sat, Mar 7, 1987, 4:30 AM GMT+12 (16:30 UTC), 33 km (21 mi) below the surface.
A larger quake followed: M5.1 278 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
- 4.8 (mb), light
- Local time
- UTC
- 1987-03-06 16:30:19 UTC
- Depth
- 33.0 km (20.5 mi), shallow
- Epicenter
- 50.982° N, 179.586° 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.
- Depth from
- OPERATOR_ASSIGNED
Nearby
Within 100 km, magnitude 1.8 and up: 4 in the 60 days after this one and 6 in the 30 days before it.
After
- 5.1278 km WSW of Adak, Alaska · 14451 days ago · 33 km deep · 13 km away
- 4.6Rat Islands, Aleutian Islands, Alaska · 14445 days ago · 33 km deep · 40 km away
- 4.7242 km WSW of Adak, Alaska · 14419 days ago · 33 km deep · 50 km away
- 4.3190 km WSW of Adak, Alaska · 14412 days ago · 33 km deep · 99 km away
Before
- 4.4279 km WSW of Adak, Alaska · 14451 days ago · 33 km deep · 37 km away
- 4.5299 km WSW of Adak, Alaska · 14451 days ago · 33 km deep · 27 km away
- 5.7274 km WSW of Adak, Alaska · 14451 days ago · 54 km deep · 17 km away
- 5.4193 km WSW of Adak, Alaska · 14468 days ago · 33 km deep · 88 km away
- 6.2194 km WSW of Adak, Alaska · 14468 days ago · 33 km deep · 87 km away
- 4.8Rat Islands, Aleutian Islands, Alaska · 14474 days ago · 33 km deep · 57 km away
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Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp000331q. Read Mon, Sep 28, 2026, 9:23 PM UTC.