Alaska earthquakes

M3.6 earthquake 173 km ESE of Atka, Alaska

A magnitude 3.6 earthquake struck 173 km ESE of Atka, Alaska on Sat, Aug 12, 2017, 8:34 PM HADT (05:34 UTC), 58 km (36 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M4.6 161 km SW of Nikolski, Alaska. This one was a foreshock.

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

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The earthquake

Magnitude: 3.6 (mb, body-wave), minor
Magnitude from: USGS National Earthquake Information Center
Local time: Sat, Aug 12, 2017, 8:34 PM HADT
UTC: 2017-08-13 05:34:52 UTC
Depth: 58.3 km (36.2 mi), shallow
Epicenter: 51.858° N, 171.737° 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
3.6	mb, body-wave	USGS National Earthquake Information Center	Preferred · Reviewed · ±0.167 · 9 stations
3.4	ML, local (Richter)	Alaska Earthquake Center	Preliminary

Did you feel it?

No one has reported feeling this quake to the USGS.

How well it is located

Reviewed by a seismologist.

Location uncertainty: About 5.3 km horizontally, 9.1 km in depth
Magnitude uncertainty: ±0.17
Stations used: 22

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 1.5 and up: 19 in the 60 days after this one and 8 in the 30 days before it.

After

Before

Earthquakes today Alaska earthquakes Live radar here

Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event us2000ac5n (also filed as ak16510277, ak017ac73nj3). Read Fri, Oct 2, 2026, 11:17 AM UTC.