All earthquakesAlaska

Alaska earthquakes in 1920

3 earthquakes of magnitude 2.5 or more were located in Alaska in 1920. The largest: M6.3 200 km SW of Adak, Alaska, Oct 27, 1920.

From the USGS catalog. Times are local to each quake.

19191921

Map

Where every quake of 1920 was located in Alaska. Select one for its page.

Open the live map with earthquakes

Every quake of 1920

Magnitude 2.5 and up, newest first.

Month by month

Counted by UTC date, which is how the catalog files them.

MonthQuakesLargestWhere
January 19200
February 19200
March 19200
April 19200
May 19200
June 19200
July 192016.1109 km E of McCarthy, Alaska
August 192016.261 km SSW of Nikolski, Alaska
September 19200
October 192016.3200 km SW of Adak, Alaska
November 19200
December 19200

What this means

The catalog is only as complete as the instruments of the time. Worldwide coverage of magnitude 5 and up dates from the 1960s, and of 4.5 from the 1990s; earlier years hold the large quakes and the ones near a station, so a low count in an early year means fewer instruments, not a quiet earth.

By year

Every year the USGS catalog covers.

Nearby

Alaska nowWorldwide in 1920

Sources

Earthquakes, magnitudes, depths, shaking estimates and felt reports from the U.S. Geological Survey Earthquake Hazards Program, read from its live feeds and its catalog back to 1900. Tsunami messages from NOAA’s tsunami warning centers.