Alaska earthquakes

M4.7 earthquake 54 km S of Sand Point, Alaska

A magnitude 4.7 earthquake struck 54 km S of Sand Point, Alaska on Thu, Jul 23, 2020, 11:56 AM AKDT (19:56 UTC), 41 km (26 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M6.1 75 km SW of Sand Point, Alaska. This one was a foreshock.

Sand Point 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: 4.7 (Mwr, regional moment), light
Magnitude from: USGS National Earthquake Information Center
Local time: Thu, Jul 23, 2020, 11:56 AM AKDT
UTC: 2020-07-23 19:56:50 UTC
Depth: 41.0 km (25.5 mi), shallow
Epicenter: 54.854° N, 160.658° 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
4.7	Mwr, regional moment	USGS National Earthquake Information Center	Preferred · Reviewed · ±0.047 · 44 stations
4.7	ML, local (Richter)	Alaska Earthquake Center	Preliminary

Did you feel it?

No one has reported feeling this quake to the USGS.

Fault motion and ground failure

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

Faulting: Reverse (thrust)
Moment magnitude: 4.7 Mwr
Nodal plane 1: Strike 29°, dip 68°, rake 72°
Nodal plane 2: Strike 250°, dip 28°, rake 128°

How well it is located

Reviewed by a seismologist.

Location uncertainty: About 4.7 km horizontally, 4.5 km in depth
Magnitude uncertainty: ±0.05
Depth from: From location
Station coverage gap: 78°
Stations used: 134

Nearest places

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

Sand Point, AlaskaPopulation 1,064. Forecast55 kmS

Nearby

Within 100 km, magnitude 1.7 and up: at least 202 in the 60 days after this one and at least 200 in the 30 days before it.

After

The first 60 of at least 202.

Before

Earthquakes today Alaska earthquakes Live radar here

Sources

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event us6000b2xh (also filed as ak0209fctho3, ak0209fcthmp). Read Sat, Oct 3, 2026, 9:59 PM UTC.