M5.2 earthquake 103 km SSW of Atka, Alaska

A magnitude 5.2 earthquake struck 103 km SSW of Atka, Alaska on Tue, Jan 12, 1988, 3:07 PM HAST (01:07 UTC), 33 km (21 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M5.3 83 km SSW of Atka, Alaska. This one was a foreshock.

Map

Where this earthquake was located, with the others nearby. Select one for its page.

Different scales measure different things and differ by a few tenths. The USGS marks one as preferred, and it is the one this page uses.

Mag.	Scale	Computed by	Notes
5.2	Ms, surface-wave	USGS National Earthquake Information Center	Preferred · Reviewed · 2 stations
5.36	Mw, moment	ISC-GEM global catalog	Final · ±0.31

No one has reported feeling this quake to the USGS.

Reviewed by a seismologist.

Within 100 km, magnitude 2.2 and up: 14 in the 60 days after this one and 5 in the 30 days before it.

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event usp0003c0e (also filed as iscgem447773). Read Sat, Oct 3, 2026, 3:23 PM UTC.