Alaska earthquakes

M5.1 earthquake 270 km SE of Chiniak, Alaska

A magnitude 5.1 earthquake struck 270 km SE of Chiniak, Alaska on Fri, Jan 31, 2020, 2:25 AM AKST (11:25 UTC), 10 km (6 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M5.2 250 km ESE of Chiniak, Alaska. This one was a foreshock.

Kodiak 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: 5.1 (mww), moderate
Local time: Fri, Jan 31, 2020, 2:25 AM AKST
UTC: 2020-01-31 11:25:37 UTC
Depth: 10.3 km (6.4 mi), shallow
Epicenter: 55.798° N, 149.329° W
Region: Alaska
Felt reports: 1
Tsunami flag: Yes: a large quake in an oceanic region
Status: Reviewed by a seismologist

Tsunami

The USGS flags a quake this large in an oceanic region. The flag does not mean a tsunami happened; the tsunami warning centers decide that, and their messages are below when they issued any.

Current tsunami warnings: tsunami.gov. Warnings in force in the US also appear on our alerts pages.

Did you feel it?

1 person reported to the USGS what they felt; the strongest reported shaking was II, weak shaking.

Fault motion and ground failure

How the rock slipped, from the moment tensor, and the USGS estimate of landslides and liquefaction.

Faulting: Strike-slip
Moment magnitude: 5.1 Mww
Nodal plane 1: Strike 179°, dip 88°, rake 178°
Nodal plane 2: Strike 269°, dip 88°, rake 2°

How well it is located

Reviewed by a seismologist.

Location uncertainty: About 5.8 km horizontally, 3.6 km in depth
Magnitude uncertainty: ±0.03
Depth from: From location
Station coverage gap: 76°
Stations used: 340

Nearest places

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

Kodiak, AlaskaPopulation 6,253. Forecast290 kmSE

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 2.1 and up: 41 in the 60 days after this one and 18 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 us60007l8q (also filed as at00q4yyet, ak0201fgczv6, iscgem617250668). Read Sun, Sep 27, 2026, 2:15 AM UTC.