Alaska earthquakes

M3.1 earthquake 17 km W of Willow, Alaska

A magnitude 3.1 earthquake struck 17 km W of Willow, Alaska on Fri, Aug 9, 1996, 1:54 PM AKDT (21:54 UTC), 45 km (28 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M3.6 2 km SSW of Tyonek, Alaska. This one was a foreshock.

Willow forecast More in Alaska

Map

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

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The earthquake

Magnitude: 3.1 (ML, local (Richter)), minor
Magnitude from: Alaska Earthquake Center
Local time: Fri, Aug 9, 1996, 1:54 PM AKDT
UTC: 1996-08-09 21:54:32 UTC
Depth: 45.4 km (28.2 mi), shallow
Epicenter: 61.743° N, 150.369° W
Region: Alaska
Tsunami flag: No
Status: Reviewed by a seismologist

Magnitude estimates

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
3.1	ML, local (Richter)	Alaska Earthquake Center	Preferred · Preliminary
3.2	ML, local (Richter)	USGS National Earthquake Information Center	Reviewed

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: 34

Nearest places

Distance and direction from each place to the epicenter, with its forecast.

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 1.5 and up: 133 in the 60 days after this one and 64 in the 30 days before it.

After

The first 60 of 133.

Before

Earthquakes today Alaska earthquakes Live radar here

Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event ak996a7i4sjd (also filed as usp0007nb2). Read Mon, Oct 5, 2026, 12:15 PM UTC.