Magnitude 2.3 - 30 miles E of Pump Station #3
November 19, 2020 21:38:54 AKST (November 20, 2020 06:38:54 UTC)
68.8859°N 147.6192°W Depth 10.2 miles (16 km)
This event has been reviewed by a seismologist
- 46 miles (74 km) SE of Pump Station #2
- 54 miles (87 km) NE of Pump Station #4
- 75 miles (121 km) NW of Arctic Village
- 92 miles (149 km) S of Deadhorse
- 96 miles (155 km) S of Prudhoe Bay
- 98 miles (158 km) S of Pump Station #1
- 116 miles (188 km) NE of Anaktuvuk Pass
- 116 miles (188 km) E of Umiat
- 121 miles (196 km) NE of Wiseman
- 129 miles (209 km) SW of Kaktovik
- 131 miles (212 km) NE of Coldfoot
- 280 miles (453 km) N of Fairbanks
- Magnitude type: Ml2
- Event type: earthquake
Tectonic Setting of the Brooks Range
Seismicity in the Brooks Range is characterized by intraplate earthquakes associated with mountain building and crustal reorganization. A broad earthquake band extends from northeast of the Brooks Range toward the Beaufort Sea. Earthquake source mechanisms comprise a mixture of strike-slip and normal faulting events, indicative of north-northwest compression and northeast extension. A magnitude 6.4 earthquake on August 12, 2018 located 43 miles (69 km) south of Kaktovik was the largest earthquake ever recorded north of the Brooks Range. It produced an energetic aftershock sequence that continues to this day. In 2019, a vigorous swarm sequence began in the Purcell Mountains. More than 9,000 earthquakes have been recorded as part of this swarm through the end of 2021, including five earthquakes with magnitudes larger than 5. At present, this swarm continues, though at a decreased activity level.