M3.8 earthquake 11 km N of Valdez, Alaska
A magnitude 3.8 earthquake struck 11 km N of Valdez, Alaska on Sun, Mar 28, 2021, 5:05 PM AKDT (01:05 UTC), 6 km (3 mi) below the surface.
Map
Where this earthquake was located, with the others nearby. Select one for its page.
The earthquake
- Magnitude
- 3.8 (ML, local (Richter)), minor
- Magnitude from
- Alaska Earthquake Center
- Local time
- UTC
- 2021-03-29 01:05:52 UTC
- Depth
- 5.5 km (3.4 mi), shallow
- Epicenter
- 61.233° N, 146.373° W
- Region
- Alaska
- Felt reports
- 18
- Strongest shaking
- IV, light shaking
- PAGER alert
- Green
- 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3.8 | ML, local (Richter) | Alaska Earthquake Center | Preferred · Preliminary |
| 3.9 | Mwr, regional moment | USGS National Earthquake Information Center | Reviewed · ±0.027 · 132 stations |
Shaking
The USGS ShakeMap: shaking estimated from seismic stations and the quake’s size, on the Modified Mercalli intensity scale.
- Strongest estimated
- IV, light shaking
- Peak ground acceleration
- 316.0% of gravity
- Peak ground velocity
- 2.1 cm/s
- Map
- Automatic

Did you feel it?
18 people reported to the USGS what they felt; the strongest reported shaking was V, moderate shaking.

Estimated impact
The USGS PAGER system estimates deaths and economic losses from the shaking and the population and buildings exposed to it.
- Alert level
- Green: little or no damage or loss of life expected
| Range | Chance |
|---|---|
| Under 1 | 69% |
| 1 to 10 | 29% |
| 10 to 100 | 2% |
| 100 to 1,000 | Under 1% |
| 1,000 to 10,000 | Under 1% |
| 10,000 to 100,000 | Under 1% |
| 100,000 to 10,000,000 | Under 1% |
| Range, million USD | Chance |
|---|---|
| Under 1 | 65% |
| 1 to 10 | 30% |
| 10 to 100 | 4% |
| 100 to 1,000 | Under 1% |
| 1,000 to 10,000 | Under 1% |
| 10,000 to 100,000 | Under 1% |
| 100,000 to 10,000,000 | Under 1% |
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
- 3.9 Mwr
- Nodal plane 1
- Strike 243°, dip 72°, rake 64°
- Nodal plane 2
- Strike 120°, dip 32°, rake 143°
How well it is located
Reviewed by a seismologist.
- Stations used
- 146
Nearest places
Distance and direction from each place to the epicenter, with its forecast.
Nearby
Within 100 km, magnitude 1.5 and up: 53 in the 60 days after this one and 48 in the 30 days before it.
After
- 2.335 km WNW of Valdez, Alaska · 2012 days ago · 19 km deep · 30 km away
- 1.636 km WNW of Valdez, Alaska · 2012 days ago · 28 km deep · 30 km away
- 2.620 km S of Glacier View, Alaska · 2012 days ago · 25 km deep · 80 km away
- 1.544 km NNW of Valdez, Alaska · 2011 days ago · 33 km deep · 33 km away
- 1.819 km SW of Glacier View, Alaska · 2010 days ago · 29 km deep · 92 km away
- 1.515 km SSE of Tatitlek, Alaska · 2010 days ago · 5 km deep · 58 km away
- 1.513 km NNW of Tatitlek, Alaska · 2008 days ago · 14 km deep · 37 km away
- 1.930 km SE of Glacier View, Alaska · 2008 days ago · 20 km deep · 64 km away
- 1.746 km N of Valdez, Alaska · 2008 days ago · 27 km deep · 35 km away
- 1.747 km S of Nelchina, Alaska · 2004 days ago · 13 km deep · 40 km away
- 1.539 km NW of Valdez, Alaska · 2004 days ago · 7 km deep · 30 km away
- 1.634 km SSW of Glacier View, Alaska · 2003 days ago · 13 km deep · 85 km away
- 2.047 km SSE of Glacier View, Alaska · 2002 days ago · 13 km deep · 59 km away
- 2.236 km NW of Valdez, Alaska · 2002 days ago · 8 km deep · 29 km away
- 1.933 km N of Valdez, Alaska · 2001 days ago · 15 km deep · 23 km away
- 1.841 km ENE of Cordova, Alaska · 1997 days ago · 19 km deep · 97 km away
- 2.439 km NNW of Valdez, Alaska · 1996 days ago · 6 km deep · 28 km away
- 1.644 km SSE of Eureka Roadhouse, Alaska · 1995 days ago · 26 km deep · 44 km away
- 2.139 km NNW of Valdez, Alaska · 1994 days ago · 16 km deep · 28 km away
- 1.750 km N of Valdez, Alaska · 1992 days ago · 19 km deep · 39 km away
- 2.134 km NW of Valdez, Alaska · 1992 days ago · 14 km deep · 26 km away
- 1.747 km SSE of Nelchina, Alaska · 1988 days ago · 31 km deep · 42 km away
- 1.939 km NW of Valdez, Alaska · 1986 days ago · 10 km deep · 32 km away
- 1.535 km SE of Glacier View, Alaska · 1985 days ago · 14 km deep · 58 km away
- 1.652 km SSW of Tatitlek, Alaska · 1983 days ago · 21 km deep · 96 km away
- 2.37 km WSW of Tatitlek, Alaska · 1981 days ago · 21 km deep · 49 km away
- 2.2Southern Alaska · 1979 days ago · 30 km deep · 71 km away
- 1.5Southern Alaska · 1979 days ago · 0 km deep · 34 km away
- 1.831 km WNW of Valdez, Alaska · 1979 days ago · 0 km deep · 29 km away
- 2.9Southern Alaska · 1979 days ago · 24 km deep · 36 km away
- 1.562 km S of Glacier View, Alaska · 1979 days ago · 0 km deep · 67 km away
- 2.045 km N of Valdez, Alaska · 1979 days ago · 16 km deep · 34 km away
- 1.636 km NNW of Valdez, Alaska · 1977 days ago · 30 km deep · 26 km away
- 1.837 km SW of Tatitlek, Alaska · 1977 days ago · 20 km deep · 79 km away
- 1.612 km NNW of Tatitlek, Alaska · 1977 days ago · 3 km deep · 35 km away
- 1.639 km ENE of Whittier, Alaska · 1977 days ago · 23 km deep · 95 km away
- 2.465 km S of Glacier View, Alaska · 1976 days ago · 8 km deep · 75 km away
- 1.753 km S of Glacier View, Alaska · 1975 days ago · 20 km deep · 67 km away
- 1.958 km WNW of Tatitlek, Alaska · 1975 days ago · 10 km deep · 74 km away
- 1.744 km NW of Tatitlek, Alaska · 1974 days ago · 61 km deep · 47 km away
- 2.49 km W of Eureka Roadhouse, Alaska · 1973 days ago · 20 km deep · 93 km away
- 1.514 km WNW of Valdez, Alaska · 1971 days ago · 43 km deep · 15 km away
- 2.044 km SSE of Nelchina, Alaska · 1970 days ago · 27 km deep · 44 km away
- 1.630 km NNW of Valdez, Alaska · 1970 days ago · 20 km deep · 20 km away
- 1.611 km SW of Eureka Roadhouse, Alaska · 1968 days ago · 28 km deep · 87 km away
- 1.661 km S of Glacier View, Alaska · 1962 days ago · 17 km deep · 70 km away
- 1.848 km N of Valdez, Alaska · 1962 days ago · 18 km deep · 37 km away
- 2.833 km S of Tolsona, Alaska · 1961 days ago · 34 km deep · 63 km away
- 1.816 km SW of Valdez, Alaska · 1960 days ago · 4 km deep · 24 km away
- 2.740 km NE of Whittier, Alaska · 1955 days ago · 8 km deep · 96 km away
- 2.535 km SSW of Glacier View, Alaska · 1955 days ago · 14 km deep · 91 km away
- 1.949 km SSE of Glacier View, Alaska · 1953 days ago · 20 km deep · 60 km away
- 1.539 km SSE of Glacier View, Alaska · 1953 days ago · 23 km deep · 58 km away
Before
- 1.646 km NNW of Valdez, Alaska · 2014 days ago · 15 km deep · 36 km away
- 1.811 km NNW of Tatitlek, Alaska · 2014 days ago · 15 km deep · 37 km away
- 2.418 km NE of Valdez, Alaska · 2015 days ago · 25 km deep · 15 km away · felt by 1
- 2.512 km WSW of Eureka Roadhouse, Alaska · 2015 days ago · 35 km deep · 91 km away
- 1.634 km NW of Valdez, Alaska · 2015 days ago · 20 km deep · 26 km away
- 1.547 km SSE of Nelchina, Alaska · 2017 days ago · 15 km deep · 40 km away
- 1.536 km N of Valdez, Alaska · 2019 days ago · 20 km deep · 25 km away
- 1.536 km WSW of Tatitlek, Alaska · 2020 days ago · 12 km deep · 74 km away
- 1.726 km NW of Valdez, Alaska · 2020 days ago · 5 km deep · 19 km away
- 1.519 km SSE of Nelchina, Alaska · 2020 days ago · 25 km deep · 67 km away
- 1.621 km NNW of Valdez, Alaska · 2021 days ago · 10 km deep · 11 km away
- 2.018 km ESE of Glacier View, Alaska · 2023 days ago · 25 km deep · 76 km away
- 1.629 km N of Valdez, AK · 2024 days ago · 20 km deep · 18 km away
- 2.529 km NW of Valdez, Alaska · 2024 days ago · 9 km deep · 23 km away
- 2.029 km WNW of Tatitlek, Alaska · 2025 days ago · 14 km deep · 50 km away
- 1.550 km W of Tatitlek, Alaska · 2029 days ago · 18 km deep · 78 km away
- 1.635 km N of Valdez, Alaska · 2029 days ago · 20 km deep · 25 km away
- 1.631 km ENE of Cordova, Alaska · 2030 days ago · 5 km deep · 85 km away
- 1.538 km WSW of Tatitlek, Alaska · 2031 days ago · 7 km deep · 76 km away
- 1.535 km NNW of Tatitlek, Alaska · 2031 days ago · 25 km deep · 37 km away
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Sources
From the USGS Earthquake Hazards Program and its partner networks, event ak02141jx5ns (also filed as us6000dx9n). Read Thu, Oct 1, 2026, 9:53 PM UTC.