M3.0 earthquake 11 km ENE of Sterling, AK

A magnitude 3.0 earthquake struck 11 km ENE of Sterling, AK on Tue, Nov 3, 2020, 6:15 PM AKST (03:15 UTC), 40 km (25 mi) below the surface.

A larger quake followed: M3.5 10 km NE of Cooper Landing, 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
3.0	ML, local (Richter)	Alaska Earthquake Center	Preferred · Preliminary
3.1	ML, local (Richter)	USGS National Earthquake Information Center	Reviewed · ±0.03 · 150 stations

The USGS ShakeMap: shaking estimated from seismic stations and the quake’s size, on the Modified Mercalli intensity scale.

No one has reported feeling this quake to the USGS.

Reviewed by a seismologist.

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

Within 100 km, magnitude 1.5 and up: at least 200 in the 60 days after this one and 94 in the 30 days before it.

The first 60 of at least 200.

From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event ak020e72xt76 (also filed as us7000ca3f). Read Fri, Oct 2, 2026, 8:30 AM UTC.