All earthquakesAlaska

Alaska earthquakes in 1961

19 earthquakes of magnitude 2.5 or more were located in Alaska in 1961. The largest: M6.5 Rat Islands, Aleutian Islands, Alaska, Dec 30, 1961.

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

19601962

Map

Where every quake of 1961 was located in Alaska. Select one for its page.

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Every quake of 1961

Magnitude 2.5 and up, newest first.

Month by month

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

MonthQuakesLargestWhere
January 196166.546 km ESE of Adak, Alaska
February 19610
March 196116.134 km ESE of Adak, Alaska
April 19610
May 196116.183 km SSE of Attu Station, Alaska
June 196115.8125 km SE of Attu Station, Alaska
July 19610
August 196116.3240 km SSW of Nikolski, Alaska
September 196166.06 km SSE of Fox River, Alaska
October 196115.5212 km ESE of Attu Station, Alaska
November 19610
December 196126.5Rat Islands, Aleutian Islands, Alaska

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 1961

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.